/ 


65TH  CONGRESS  | 
1st  Session      \ 


SENATE 


j  DOCUMENT 
1      No.  42 


THE  GRAND  CANYON 


AN  ARTICLE 


GIVING  THE  CREDIT  OF  FIRST  TRAVERSING  THE  GRAND 
CANYON  OF  THE  COLORADO  TO  JAMES  WHITE,  A  COLO- 
RADO GOLD  PROSPECTOR,  WHO  IT  IS  CLAIMED  MADE  THE 
VOYAGE  TWO  YEARS  PREVIOUS  TO  THE  EXPEDITION 
UNDER  THE  DIRECTION  OF  MAJ.  J.  W.  POWELL  IN  1869 


By 
THOMAS  F.  DAWSON 


PRESENTED  BY  MR.  SHAFROTH 

MAY  25,  191  7. — Referred  to  the  Committee  on  Printing 


WASHINGTON 

GOVERNMENT  PRINTING  OFFICE 
1917 


SENATE  RESOLUTION  No.  79. 

Reported  by  Mr.  SMITH  of  Arizona. 


IN  THE  SENATE  OF  THE  UNITED  STATES, 

June  4,  1917. 

Resolved,  That  the  manuscript  submitted  by  the  Senator  from 
Colorado   [Mr.    Shafroth]   on   May   25,    1917,    entitled    "First 
Through    the   Grand   Canyon,"   by   Thomas   F.    Dawson,    be 
printed  as  a  Senate  document,  with  illustration. 
Attest: 

JAMES  M.  BAKER,  Secretary. 


WHEREFORE. 


The  erection  by  the  National  Government  of  a  monument  to 
the  memory  of  Maj.  John  W.  Powell,  as  "the  first  explorer"  of 
the  Grand  Canyon  of  the  Colorado,  has  had  the  effect  of  raising 
a  question  among  pioneers  of  the  West  as  to  whether  the  honor 
conferred  upon  Maj.  Powell  in  connection  with  the  early  navi- 
gation of  the  Canyon  should  not  be  shared  with  another.  Mr. 
Powell's  friends  claim  for  him  the  distinction  of  being  not  only 
the  first  to  "explore"  the  canyon  but  also  that  of  being  the 
first  to  pass  through  it  under  any  circumstances.  This  claim 
is  challenged  in  behalf  of  one  James  White,  a  mining  prospector, 
who,  they  contend,  went  through  the  canyon  two  years  previous 
to  the  time  of  the  Powell  expedition.  Powell  made  his  voyage 
in  1869;  White  claims  to  have  made  his  in  1867. 

So  persistent  has  been  the  contention  that  White  was  the  first 
to  traverse  the  Canyon  that  the  writer  set  himself  the  task  of 
investigating  the  subject,  wrhich  he  has  done  as  thoroughly  as 
possible  consistent  with  other  duties,  with  the  result  that  he 
has  succeeded  at  least  in  convincing  himself  that  White's  claim 
is  not  unfounded.  The  undertaking  has  not  been  easy;  for, 
while  much  literature  has  grown  up  around  Maj.  Powell's  expe- 
dition, comparatively  little  has  been  written  about  White,  and 
that  little  of  the  distant  past,  and  now  to  be  found  only  in  pub- 
lications long  since  out  of  print.  It  is  believed  that  enough  of 
this  material  has  been  revived  to  make  a  case  for  White ;  but  if 
not,  it  is  hoped  that  at  least  it  may  aid  the  future  investigator 
in  arriving  at  a  just  conclusion. 

In  entering  into  the  merits  of  the  controversy  it  will  be  well 
for  the  reader  to  bear  in  mind  that  the  Colorado  River  is  formed 
in  southeastern  Utah,  by  the  union  of  the  Grand  and  the  Green 
Rivers,  the  former  rising  in  northern  Colorado  and  the  latter  in 
the  adjoining  State  of  Wyoming,  and  that  the  stream  thus 
created  flows  in  a  general  southwestern  course  into  the  Gulf  of 
of  California.  Roughly  speaking,  from  the  junction  to  the  gulf 


4  THE   GRAND   CANYON. 

is  a  distance  of  1,000  miles,  the  upper  half  flowing  through 
canyons  varying  in  depth  from  1,000  to  over  6,000  feet.  The 
name  of  "Grand  Canyon"  has  been  bestowed  upon  the  217  miles 
of  the  great  gorge  lying  between  the  mouth  of  the  Little  Colo- 
rado and  the  Grand  Wash;  but  there  could  be  little  mistake  in 
extending  the  designation  to  the  entire  upper  half  of  the  stream, 
and  that  course  is  followed  here  for  the  sake  of  convenience. 
From  the  upper  to  the  lower  end  of  this  vast  stretch  of  hemmed- 
in  water  there  are  few  crossings,  and  those  difficult  and  not 
easily  discernible. 

The  first  white  men  to  look  into  the  great  gorge  were  members 
of  the  Spanish  exploring  expedition  sent  out  in  1539  under 
Coronado ;  but  their  investigation  was  made  only  from  the  rim, 
thousands  of  feet  above  the  stream.  After  their  casual  in- 
spection more  than  three  centuries  were  permitted  to  come  and 
go  without  an  exploration  of  the  canyon's  depths,  and  this 
exploration,  like  many  other  things,  did  not  come  until  after  the 
control  of  the  region  had  passed  from  Spain  and  her  heirs  into 
the  hands  of  Americans.  Indeed,  the  canyon  plateau  was  so 
distant  from  centers  of  population,  so  inhospitable  and  desolate, 
and,  withal,  so  inaccessible,  before  the  comparatively  recent 
day  of  the  railroad  that  it  was  visited  but  rarely  by  any  except 
a  few  wild  Indians.  Apparently  even  the  savages  saw  very 
little  if  anything  of  the  cavernous  depths,  for  they  had  a  super- 
stitious dread  of  them,  which  added  much  to  the  actual  dangers 
in  keeping  them  away  from  the  water's  edge.  The  little  knowl- 
edge actually  existing  among  white  men  was  confined  almost 
entirely  to  prospectors,  trappers,  and  a  few  Government 
scientists,  who  had  looked  into  the  canyon  from  one  end  or 
the  other  or  had  shudderingly  peered  over  the  far-away  rim 
into  the  abyss  below.  The  adventurous  frontiersmen  were 
equal  to  any  ordinary  task  of  exploration,  but  the  canyon  was 
too  awesome  for  the  vast  majority  of  even  this  hardy  class. 
True,  it  was  currently  reported  that  at  different  times  some  of 
them  had  entered  the  vast  inclosure,  but  none  of  the  reports 
brought  back  any  of  these  adventurers.  Indeed,  of  these  500 
miles  of  chasm  there  were  vast  stretches  of  which  nothing  was 
known.  What  wonder,  then,  that  the  great  fissure  was  regarded 
as  a  stupendous  mystery  and  that  legend  and  imagination  filled 
it  with  untold  dangers? 


THE   GRAND   CANYON.  5 

In  the  face  of  this  universal  awe  it  would  have  been  a  brave 
man  indeed  who  should  undertake  voluntarily  the  exploration 
of  the  canyon  by  following  the  river.  Much  more  probable  is 
it  that  the  first  voyage  should  have  been  due  to  accident,  as  it 
was  if  the  contention  made  in  behalf  of  White  be  correct. 

Powell  made  two  expeditions  to  and  through  the  great 
canyon,  the  first  in  1869  and  the  second  in  1872;  but  with  the 
latter  this  article  is  in  nowise  concerned.  Needless  to  say  that 
he  was  well  equipped  with  boats  and  provisions  and  that  he 
was  accompanied  by  a  carefully  selected  body  of  assistants. 
He  began  his  first  voyage  at  Green  River  Station,  Wyo.,  where 
the  Union  Pacific  Railroad  crosses  Green  River.  The  start 
was  made  on  the  24th  day  of  May,  1869,  and  the  end  of  the 
journey  was  reached  on  the  3oth  of  August  following.  His 
party  suffered  so  much  hardship  and  experienced  so  many 
narrow  escapes  from  utter  destruction  that  the  achievement 
has  been  universally  and  justly  exploited  as  one  of  the  greatest 
of  all  feats  of  daring,  skill,  endurance,  and  good  fortune.  Con- 
sequently several  books  have  been  written  and  many  stories 
told  about  the  one-armed  ex-Army  officer's  exploit.  And  now 
Congress  has  decreed  that  the  record  which  so  far  has  enlivened 
only  the  destructible  printed  page  shall  be  perpetuated  in  endur- 
ing bronze.  Very  well,  so  long  as  the  claims  in  Powell's  behalf 
are  confined  to  his  work  as  a  scientific  investigator  and  explorer. 
But  if  he  is  to  continue  to  be  heralded  forth  as  the  first  navi- 
gator of  the  canyoned  river,  objection  probably  will  continue  to 
be  interposed  by  White's  friends  in  his  behalf. 

White's  trip  was  the  farthest  possible  from  a  premeditated 
proceeding.  He  had  not  heard  of  the  canyon,  except  in  general 
terms,  before  he  found  himself  locked  within  its  walls,  and  he 
continued  to  the  end  because  he  discovered  no  means  of  escape 
from  its  compelling  embrace.  Gold  was  the  lure  that  led  him 
to  the  Colorado,  and  pursuit  by  murderous  savages  the  force 
which  drove  him  to  embark  upon  its  waters.  T.  F.  D. 


THE  FIRST  THROUGH  THE  GRAND  CANYON 
OF  THE  COLORADO. 


WHITE'S  ADVENTURE. 

No  claim  is  made  that  a  complete  compilation  has  been  accom- 
plished of  all  that  was  written  about  the  White  exploit  at  the 
time  it  occurred;  but  it  is  believed  that  the  principal  accounts, 
at  least  the  principal  accounts  based  directly  on  the  man's  own 
verbal  narrative,  have  been  unearthed,  and  they  are  reproduced 
herewith  as  the  best  possible  authority  on  the  subject.  For 
reasons  which  will  be  apparent,  their  presentation  has  been  de- 
ferred, but  a  brief  outline  of  the  adventure  would  seem  to  be 
desirable  at  this  point. 

In  company  with  two  other  men,  White  was  engaged  in  the 
summer  of  1867  in  prospecting  for  the  precious  metals  in  west- 
ern Colorado,  his  companions  being  one  Capt.  Charles  Baker,  who 
a  few  years  before  had  led  the  first  organized  prospecting  expe- 
dition into  the  San  Juan  country  in  southwestern  Colorado,  and 
one  George  Stroll,1  said  to  have  been  an  old  Mississippi  steam- 
boat man  turned  gold  hunter.  Baker,  the  leader,  was  killed  by 
the  Ute  Indians  near  the  head  of  the  Colorado  River,  and  the 
other  two  men  were  forced  to  take  to  the  river  to  avoid  a  like 
fate.  Hastily  constructing  a  raft  before  the  savages  could  run 
them  down,  they  pushed  out  into  the  stream  and  soon  were  em- 
barked on  a  voyage  the  end  of  which  they  could  not  foresee — 
to  which,  indeed,  they  gave  little  thought. 

At  first  there  were  long  stretches  of  quiet  water  and  travel  was 
comparatively  comfortable.  But  the  newly  launched  voyagers 
had  not  proceeded  far  when  they  began  to  encounter  sharp 
descents  and  swift  currents.  Steep  falls  and  fierce  eddies  suc- 
ceeded each  other  in  threatening  contiguity,  and  while.plunging 
into  one  of  the  whirlpools  on  the  fourth  day  out  Stroll  was 

1  Dr.  Parry  and  Maj .  Calhoun  give  White' s  fellow  voyager  the  name  of  Henry  Strole.  White 
makes  the  name  George  Stroll,  and  his  style  will  be  followed  in  this  narrative  except  in  the 
quotations  from  Parry  and  Calhoun,  where  the  first  name  as  given  by  them  will  be  used. 

6 


THE   GRAND   CANYON.  7 

washed  off  the  raft  and  drowned.  Being  unable  to  move  in  any 
direction,  except  down  stream,  White  tied  himself  to  the  raft 
and  continued  his  course.  He  left  himself  considerable  free- 
dom of  action,  but  the  rope  prevented  his  being  entirely  sepa- 
rated from  his  rude  craft,  and  doubtless  saved  his  life  on  more 
occasions  than  one. 

For  10  days  after  the  loss  of  his  partner  White  journeyed  on- 
ward alone,  proceeding  always  with  the  current — now  dashing 
forward  with  mill-race  speed,  now  drifting  leisurely,  now 
plunging  over  an  aqueous  precipice,  now  whirled  about  in  some 
relentless  eddy.  Alternately  baked  in  the  semitropical  sun  and 
submerged  beneath  the  turbulent  waters,  he  scarcely  knew 
whether  he  was  fish,  flesh,  or  salamander.  During  most  of  the 
time  food  was  unobtainable,  and  at  night  he  could  find  a  rest- 
ing place  only  on  some  narrow  rock  ledge  or  on  an  uncertain 
sand  island  amid  stream.  What  wonder,  then,  that  at  the  end 
of  14  days  he  was  rescued,  a  bleeding,  blistered,  shriveled  crea- 
ture, almost  dead  from  hunger  and  privation,  half  demented, 
and  a  very  Lazarus  in  emaciation  and  sores !  When  he  arrived 
at  Callville,  the  old-time  Mormon  outpost  at  the  head  of  navi- 
gation, his  condition  was  such  that  he  did  not  realize  that  he 
had  emerged  from  the  canyon,  and  he  would  have  floated  on 
downstream  if  he  had  not  been  hailed  from  the  shore.  From 
all  contemporaneous  accounts  the  rescue  came  none  too  soon  to 
save  the  man's  life;  but  it  was  saved,  and  he  still  lives  to  tell 
his  own  story.  After  some  10  years  of  wandering  through  the 
West  he  settled  at  Trinidad,  Colo.,  where  (July  i,  1917)  he 
now  resides. 

White's  appearance  below  the  mouth  of  the  canyon  must 
have  been  regarded  somewhat  in  the  nature  of  the  arrival  of  a 
visitor  from  Mars.  There  was  no  telegraph  at  Callville  to  flash 
the  news  to  the  outside  world.  Yet,  notwithstanding  this 
limitation,  it  was  inevitable  that  the  main  features  of  the 
perilous  voyage  should  find  their  way  into  the  newspapers,  as 
they  soon  began  to  do.  Ultimately  the  country  at  large  was 
made  acquainted  with  the  fact  that  the  great  terra  incognita 
of  the  Big  Canyon  had  at  last  been  penetrated  and  some  of  its 
mysteries  revealed.  Later  more  formal  accounts  appeared, 
and  in  at  least  one  instance  the  achievement  received  official 
recognition  from  an  organized  body  of  scientific  men. 


WHITE'S  STORY  ATTACKED. 

These  later  accounts  were  circumstantial  and  explicit,  and,  so 
far  as  has  been  discovered,  there  was  no  serious  effort  to  con- 
trovert them  for  a  generation;  but,  beginning  about  the  end  of 
the  last  century,  at  least  four  formidable  books  and  numerous 
minor  publications  have  appeared,  in  which  direct  attack  is 
made  upon  the  validity  of  the  White  story.  Necessarily  this 
criticism  is  based  largely  on  the  ground  of  improbability;  but 
it  is  none  the  less  positive  and  aggressive  on  that  account. 

The  charges  may  be  summarized  as  follows : 

That,  because  of  the  rapids,  falls,  eddies,  etc.,  it  would  be 
out  of  the  question  for  anyone  to  traverse  the  Canyon  on  a  mere 
raft. 

That,  in  any  event,  the  trip  could  not  be  made  in  two  weeks' 
time. 

That  White's  report  on  the  character  of  the  stream  and 
Canyon  walls  is  inaccurate. 

That  distances  are  incorrectly  stated  by  White. 

That  certain  adventures  attributed  to  White  could  not  have 
taken  place  at  the  points  named. 

That,  conceding  (as  White's  critics  do)  that  he  did  appear  in 
the  river  at  Callville  in  a  wretched  condition,  his  experiences 
were  confined  to  the  lower  portion  of  "the  Canyon  waters. 

And  who  the  accusers  ? 

Some  are  inclined  to  include  the  National  Government  in 
this  category,  because  in  the  inscription  on  the  Powell  monu- 
ment the  honor  of  being  "the  first  explorer"  of  the  Canyon  is 
awarded  to  Powell.  The  monument  stands  at  Sentinel  Point, 
at  the  location  in  northern  Arizona  at  which  the  Atchison, 
Topeka  &  Santa  Fe  Railway  approaches  the  Canyon,  and  the 
inscription  reads: 

Erected  by  the  Congress  of  the  United  States  to  Major  John 
Wesley  Powell,  first  explorer  of  the  Grand  Canyon,  who 
descended  the  river  in  row  boats,  traversing  the  gorge 
beneath  this  point  August  17,  1869,  and  again  September  i, 
1872. 

8 


THE   GRAND   CANYON.  9 

Plainly  an  "explorer"  must  be  an  investigator.  That  Powell 
was  and  White  was  not.  White  was  fleeing  to  save  his  life, 
while  Powell  was  engaged  in  making  a  scientific  survey  of  the 
canyon.  So  the  monument  is  right  in  purpose  and  claim. 
Powell  was  the  first  explorer;  White  the  first  traverser. 

With  the  Government  absolved,  the  principal  critics  are : 

Frederick  S.  Dellenbaugh,  Robert  B.  Stanton,  George  Whar- 
ton  James,  and,  inferentially,  the  Outing  Co.  of  New  York,  and 
the  Kolb  brothers,  of  Arizona.  Dellenbaugh,  Stanton,  and  the 
Kolbs  have  passed  through  the  canyon — Dellenbaugh  as  a 
member  of  the  second  Powell  expedition  in  1872,  Stanton  as  the 
chief  engineer  of  a  railroad  surveying  party  in  1888,  and  the 
Kolb  brothers  in  the  prosecution  of  a  photographing  enterprise 
of  their  own  in  1911.  Mr.  James  does  not  claim  to  have  ex- 
plored the  great  gorge,  but  he  is  familiar  with  the  canyon  region. 
The  Outing  Co.  has  issued  in  book  form  a  transcript  of  Maj. 
Powell's  diary  of  his  first  voyage,  and  if  White's  claims  are  well 
founded,  injustice  is  done  to  him  in  the  title.  The  book  is  called 
First  Through  the  Grand  Canyon.  The  Kolb  brothers  have 
published  a  work  giving  a  thrilling  account  of  the  adventures  of 
Ellsworth  L.  and  Emery  A.  Kolb  in  exploring  the  canyon. 
White's  friends  could  take  no  exception  to  this  story  if  the 
authors  did  not  omit  White's  name  from  their  list  of  those  who 
have  navigated  the  canyon.  If  White  made  the  trip,  certainly 
Powell  was  not  "the  first  through,"  as  the  Outing  record  would 
have  us  believe.  And  if  he  actually  performed  the  feat  he  de- 
serves a  place  among  those  to  whom  this  honor  is  awarded  by 
the  Kolbs. 

A  more  positive  and  a  very  conspicuous  faultfinder  is  Mr. 
James.  This  splendid  writer  has  done  so  much  to  throw  light 
on  the  dark  spots  in  the  history  and  geography  of  the  Southwest 
that  one  similarly  interested  must  hesitate  to  differ  from  him  in 
any  matter.  Here  he  would  seem  to  have  been  misled.  In  his 
otherwise  excellent  work,  In  and  Around  the  Grand  Canyon, 
Mr.  James  says : 

Dr.  Parry,  the  distinguished  botanist  of  the  Mexican  Boundary  Commis- 
sion, once  was  led  into  writing  an  account  of  a  trip  supposedly  made  through 
the  canyon  by  James  White,  a  Wisconsin  miner.  This  man  was  afterwards 
employed  by  Maj.  Powell,  and  it  was  then  found  that  the  published  account 
of  his  trip  was  erroneous.  He  had  some  adventures  in  the  Canyon,  but  they 
were  small  and  unimportant  compared  with  the  stories  circulated  about 
them. 


10  THE  GRAND   CANYON. 

Most  unfortunate  is  it  that  Mr.  James  does  not  impart  more 
information  concerning  Mr.  White's  employment  by  Maj.  Powell 
and  about  the  consequent  discovery  that  the  published  accounts 
of  White's  voyage  were  erroneous.  White  tells  the  present 
writer  that  not  only  was  he  never  employed  by  Powell,  but  that 
he  never  even  saw  that  gentleman.  Moreover,  the  writer  has 
been  quite  unable  to  find  in  Mr.  Powell's  writings  any  reference 
to  such  employment.  May  it  not  be  that  it  is  Mr.  James's  state- 
ment and  not  Mr.  White's  that  is  erroneous  ? 

In  one  of  his  Grand  Canyon  books  Mr.  Dellenbaugh  says 
that  Mr.  Stan  ton  has  definitely  disproved  White's  claim  to 
distinction  as  a  voyager  through  the  canyon.  Mr.  Stanton 
has  contributed  a  readable  magazine  account  of  his  survey, 
and  in  addition  has  written  an  elaborate  report  for  the  American 
Society  of  Civil  Engineers,  which  was  published  by  that  society 
in  1892.  In  the  magazine  article  he  does  not  refer  to  White, 
but  he  does  allude  to  him  in  the  other  paper.  In  the  latter 
article  he  makes  no  specific  attempt  to  refute  the  White  story, 
but  he  devotes  some  pointed  criticism  to  the  illustrations  accom- 
panying one  of  the  accounts  of  the  White  adventure.  Here  is 
the  Stanton  paragraph  entire : 

The  exploration  by  Maj.  Powell  was  undoubtedly  the  first  journey  ever 
made  through  those  canyons.  Some  wild  stories  are  told  of  two  men  having 
gone  through  the  Grand  Canyon  on  a  raft  of  small  cotton  wood  logs.  This 
story  was  first  published  in  Gen.  Palmer's  report  on  the  Pacific  Railway 
surveys  and  afterwards  republished  with  many  embellishments  by  the 
author  and  illustrated  with  some  outlandish  pictures  in  Dr.  Bell's  New 
Tracks  in  North  America. 

It  must  be  confessed  that  the  illustrations  are  somewhat 
"raw,"  and  one  must  concede  that  if  White  was  responsible  for 
them  he  would  deserve  some  of  the  censure  that  has  been  directed 
toward  him.  Still,  even  these  illustrations  are  insufficient  to 
"dispose"  of  the  White  claim. 

Speaking  seriously,  it  should  be  said  that  doubtless  Mr. 
Dellenbaugh  had  reference  to  investigations  made  by  Mr. 
Stanton  since  the  appearance  of  his  paper.  It  is  known  to 
many  of  Mr.  Stanton's  friends,  and  probably  was  known  to 
Mr.  Dellenbaugh,  that  Mr.  Stanton  has  extended  his  research 
since  the  appearance  of  the  publications.  Unfortunately  the 
results  of  his  inquiry  have  not  been  given  to  the  public;  but  it 
is  no  secret  that  Mr.  Stanton  adheres  to  his  contention  that 


THE   GRAND   CANYON.  II 

White  did  not  make  the  trip  as  represented.  It  is  most  sincerely 
to  be  hoped  that  Mr.  Stanton's  observations  will  be  given  pub- 
licity at  an  early  day,  as  his  experience  and  general  information 
will  insure  attention  for  anything  he  may  have  to  say  about  the 
Colorado  River. 

Of  the  criticisms  which  have  found  their  way  into  print  those 
of  Mr.  Dellenbaugh  are  the  most  formidable.  This  gentleman 
has  written  two  valuable  books  on  the  Grand  Canyon,  the  first 
of  which,  The  Romance  of  the  Colorado  River,  is  in  the  main 
a  splendid  compendium  of  information  concerning  the  explora- 
tion of  the  Canyon  and  the  Canyon  region.  He,  however,  re- 
jects White's  story  and  even  goes  to  the  extent  of  attacking 
White.  In  this  work  we  are  told  that  the  White  account  is  a 
"masterful  fabrication"  and  "one  of  the  best  pieces  of  fiction 
I  have  ever  read,"  while  White  himself  is  denounced  as  a 
"champion  prevaricator,"  who  is  "nothing  if  not  dramatic." 
These  are  mere  characterizations,  and  they  would  seem  to  indi- 
cate a  degree  of  impatience  on  the  part  of  the  writer  incom- 
patible with  impartial  judgment. 

Outlining  White's  story,  Dellenbaugh  quotes  White  as  saying 
that  at  the  junction  of  Grand  and  Green  Rivers  the  walls  of  the 
canyon  are  4,000  feet  high,  whereas  they  are  not  more  than  i  ,300 
feet  at  that  exact  spot  and  not  more  than  3,000  at  any  place  in 
Cataract  Canyon,  that  portion  of  the  chasm  nearest  the  junction. 
White  is  also  represented  as  describing  the  canyon  walls  as  of 
"grayish  sandstone,"  while  only  portions  of  the  walls  are  of  sand- 
stone, and  the  major  portion  red  in  color.  In  like  manner,  White 
is  credited  with  placing  the  mouth  of  the  San  Juan  tributary  at 
only  40  miles  below  the  junction,  whereas  the  distance  is  much 
greater;  with  saying  that  the  canyons  of  the  San  Juan  and  the 
Little  Colorado  are  much  alike,  when,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  they 
are  quite  dissimilar;  with  detailing  a  harrowing  experience  in  a 
whirlpool  at  the  mouth  of  the  Little  Colorado,  when  there  is  no 
whirlpool  there;  with  saying  that  below  the  mouth  of  the  Little 
Colorado,  the  entrance  to  the  Grand  Canyon  proper,  the  sailing 
was  much  smoother  than  above,  when  in  reality  this  is  the 
roughest  part  of  the  voyage;  with  implying  that  he  continued  on 
down  the  river  because  he  could  not  escape  in  any  other  direc- 
tion, whereas  there  are  places  at  which  he  might  have  scaled  the 
canyon  walls. 


12  THE   GRAND   CANYON. 

On  account  of  these  and  other  flaws,  Mr.  Dellenbaugh  con- 
cludes that  White's  story  "reveals  an  absolute  ignorance  of  the 
river  and  its  walls,"  and  he  asserts  that  the  man's  experiences 
were  confined  to  the  lower  portion  of  the  canyon.  "Had  he 
really  entered  the  Grand  Canyon  his  raft  would  have  been 
speedily  reduced  to  toothpicks,  and  he  would  not  have  had  the 
choice  of  remaining  on  it,"  says  this  writing  voyager  concerning 
his  more  prosaic  fellow. 


WHITE'S  WITNESSES. 

In  the  face  of  this  formidable  array  of  what  may  be  called 
expert  testimony,  because  of  the  knowledge  of  the  Canyon 
possessed  by  the  writers,  what  reason  can  there  be  for  accepting 
the  reports  of  White's  exploit  ?  To  make  reply  to  this  question 
is  the  main  purpose  of  this  paper,  and  in  the  effort  considerable 
material  bearing  on  the  subject  has  been  collected.  In  the 
main,  this  consists  of  records  prepared  by  men  who  saw  and 
conversed  with  White  very  soon  after  the  conclusion  of  his  trip, 
and  they  are  quoted  here  on  the  theory  that  a  compilation  of 
such  papers  will  be  of  value  to  the  future  investigator  even 
though  there  be  some  reiteration.  It  is  believed  also  that  the 
mere  cumulation  of  such  testimony  may  aid  in  establishing 
White's  claim. 

There  also  is  presented  an  original  account  of  the  trip  by 
White  himself,  and  in  addition  a  supplementary  statement 
concerning  a  certain  phase  of  the  controversy.  The  writer 
considers  himself  fortunate  in  procuring  the  contributions  from 
Mr.  White  at  this  time,  for,  from  all  accounts,  the  man  whose 
vitality  was  sufficient  in  his  youth  to  enable  him  to  undergo  as 
great  a  strain  as  ever  fell  to  the  lot  of  mortal  is  gradually  yield- 
ing to  the  feebleness  of  old  age,  which  may  soon  render  him 
incapable  of  telling  his  story. 

The  record  is  not  one  with  which  the  modern  reader  is  familiar. 
But  little  has  been  done  to  keep  it  to  the  front  since  the  first 
startling  announcement  was  made,  now  almost  half  a  century 
ago.  Probably  the  principal  reason  for  this  obscurity  is  to  be 
found  in  White's  retiring  disposition  and  the  correlative  fact  that 
others  who  have  covered  the  same  field  of  adventure  were  more 
fortunate  in  possessing  avenues  for  reaching  the  public.  White 
has  not  sought  notoriety  in  connection  with  his  marvelous 
exploit;  but,  on  the  contrary,  after  narrating  the  facts  soon 
after  its  occurrence,  settled  down  to  a  humdrum  life,  seeming 
quite  content  to  let  the  world  forget  that  he  had  done  anything 
beyond  the  ordinary.  He  has  held  no  official  position  and  has 

13 


14  THE   GRAND    CANYON. 

lived  the  live  of  a  humble  toiler  for  his  daily  bread.  He  has 
not  had  access  to  the  press.  He  has  enjoyed  none  of  the  aids 
to  fame  which  have  been  supplied  so  abundantly  to  his  more 
fortunate  rivals. 

It  is  not  to  be  contended  that  there  are  no  difficulties  in  the 
way  of  sustaining  the  White  story,  for,  if  the  criticisms  are 
based  on  the  ground  of  improbability,  it  must  be  admitted  in 
fairness  that  White  is  the  only  direct  witness  as  to  the  actuality 
of  his  achievement.  While  circumstantial  accounts  were  pub- 
lished following  the  trip,  all  were  based  necessarily  on  White's 
own  pesonal  narration.  He  was  alone  on  the  voyage,  and  actual, 
positive  corroboration  is  out  of  the  question.  Still,  the  ac- 
counts are  sufficient  in  number  and  circumstantiality  to  demand 
attention,  and  it  is  believed  they  will  go  far  toward  convincing 
the  unbiased  investigator. 

So  far  as  it  has  been  here  collected  the  direct  testimony  in 
White's  favor  is : 

A  detailed  statement  by  two  members  of  the  Engineering 
Corps  engaged  in  1867  in  making  a  survey  along  the  thirty- 
second  and  thirty-fifth  parallels  for  the  Union  Pacific  Railway. 

A  virtual  indorsement  of  the  report  of  these  engineers  by 
Gen.  William  J.  Palmer,  head  of  the  survey,  and  by  Dr.  William 
A.  Bell,  a  conspicuous  member  of  it. 

A  detailed  article  in  the  Rocky  Mountain  Herald  of  Denver, 
Colo. 

An  account  written  by  White  himself  in  1916  for  this  article. 

The  two  statements  by  members  of  the  railroad  survey  are 
those  of  Maj.  A.  R.  Calhoun  and  Dr.  C.  C.  Parry,  and  as  they 
are  the  principal  contemporaneous  accounts  of  the  White  voy- 
age, it  is  deemed  desirable  to  quote  both  in  detail,  even  at  the 
expense  of  covering  much  ground  twice. 


DR.  PARRY'S  PAPER. 

Dr.  Parry's  report,  dated  January  8,  1868,  was  made  largely 
in  duplicate  to  Gen.  Palmer  and  to  Mr.  J.  D.  Perry,  president 
of  the  Union  Pacific  Railway,  eastern  division,1  with  residence 
in  St.  Louis.  Both  copies  were  published  soon  afterwards, 
Gen.  Palmer's  in  his  official  report  and  Mr.  Perry's  in  the  Trans- 
actions of  the  St.  Louis  Academy  of  Science.  It  is  to  be  given 
immediately  below,  and  it  will  be  found  that  while  differing 
from  Mr.  Calhoun's  statement,  which  it  immediately  precedes, 
it  still  is  confirmatory  of  the  main  features  of  that  gentleman's 
story,  which,  probably  originally  written  for  newspaper  use,  is 
more  florid  than  is  to  be  expected  from  a  man  whose  life  was 
given  entirely  to  science,  as  was  that  of  Dr.  Parry. 

Following  is  the  full  text  of  Dr.  Parry's  report  as  printed  in 
the  Transactions  of  the  St.  Louis  Academy  of  Natural  Sciences, 
Volume  II : 

The  railroad  survey  now  in  progress  under  your  direction  has  afforded 
many  opportunities  for  acquiring  valuable  additions  to  our  geographical 
knowledge  of  the  unexplored  regions  of  the  far  West  from  original  sources 
not  accessible  to  ordinary  map  compilers.  Mining  prospectors  within  the 
last  20  years,  more  adventurous  than  the  noted  trappers  of  the  Rocky 
Mountains,  have  scarcely  left  a  mountain  slope  unvisited  or  a  water  course 
unexamined  over  the  wide  expanse  extending  from  the  Mississippi  River 
to  the  Pacific  Ocean.  Could  the  varied  and  adventurous  experience  of 
these  mountain  men  be  brought  into  an  accessible  form  we  should  know 
nearly  as  much  of  these  western  wilds  as  we  now  do  of  the  settled  portions 
of  our  country. 

Among  the  geographical  problems  remaining  for  the  longest  time  unsolved 
was  the  actual  character  of  the  stupendous  chasms  or  canyons  through  which 
the  Colorado  of  the  West  cleaves  its  way  from  its  snowy  source  to  its  exit 
into  the  California  Gulf.  Within  the  last  10  years  public  attention  has  been 
frequently  directed  to  this  subject,  and  various  Government  expeditions 
have  imparted  reliable  information  in  reference  to  the  upper  and  lower 
course  of  this  remarkable  river.  Lieut.  Ives  in  1857-  58  made  a  satisfactory 
exploration  of  the  navigable  portion  of  the  Colorado  extending  from  its 
mouth  to  the  Great  Canyon,  and  since  then  a  regular  line  of  light-draft 

1  The  eastern  division  of  the  Pacific  Railroad  system  -was  the  part  lying  between  Kansas 
City  and  Denver.  It  was  known  afterwards  as  the  Kansas  Pacific,  but  is  now  a  part  of  the 
Union  Pacific. 

15 


1 6  THE   GRAND   CANYON. 

boats  have  been  successfully  traversing  these  inland  waters.  Still  the 
Great  Canyon  remained  a  myth;  its  actual  length,  the  character  of  the 
stream,  the  nature  of  its  banks,  and  the  depth  of  its  vertical  walls  were 
subjects  for  speculation,  and  afforded  a  fine  field  for  exaggerated  description, 
in  which  natural  bridges,  cavernous  tunnels,  and  fearful  cataracts  formed 
a  prominent  feature. 

Now,  at  last,  we  have  a  perfectly  authentic  account  from  an  individual 
who  actually  traversed  its  formidable  depths,  and  who,  fortunately  for 
science,  still  lives  to  detail  his  trustworthy  observations  of  this  most  remark, 
able  voyage. 

Happening  to  fall  in  with  this  man  during  my  recent  stay  of  a  few  days  at 
Hardyville,  on  the  Colorado,  I  drew  from  him  the  following  connected  state- 
ment in  answer  to  direct  questions  noted  down  at  the  time: 

NARRATIVE. 

James  White,  now  living  at  Callville,  on  the  Colorado  River,  formerly 
a  resident  of  Kenosha,  Wis.,  was  induced  to  join  a  small  party  for  the  San 
Juan  region,  west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  in  search  of  placer  gold  diggings. 
The  original  party  was  composed  of  four  men,  under  the  command  of  a  Capt. 
Baker. 

The  party  left  Fort  Dodge  on  the  i3th  of  last  April,  and  after  crossing  the 
Plains  completed  their  outfit  for  the  San  Juan  country  in  Colorado  City, 
leaving  that  place  on  the  2oth  of  May.  Proceeding  by  way  of  South  Park 
and  the  upper  Arkansas,  they  crossed  the  Rocky  Mountains,  passing  round 
the  headwaters  of  the  Rio  Grande,  till  they  reached  the  Animas  Branch 
of  the  San  Juan  River.  Here  their  prospecting  for  gold  commenced,  and 
being  only  partially  successful,  they  continued  still  farther  to  the  west, 
passing  the  Dolores,  and  reaching  the  Mancos,  which  latter  stream  was 
followed  down  to  the  main  valley  of  the  San  Juan.  Crossing  the  San  Juan 
at  this  point  they  continued  down  the  valley  in  a  westerly  direction  for 
about  200  miles,  when  the  river  entered  a  canyon.  Here  they  again  crossed 
to  the  north  bank,  and,  leaving  the  river,  passed  across  a  mountain  ridge, 
aiming  to  reach  the  Colorado  River.  In  a  distance  of  50  miles  over  a 
very  rugged  country  they  reached  this  latter  stream,  or,  rather,  its  main 
eastern  tributary,  Grand  River.  At  the  point  where  they  first  struck  the 
river  it  was  inaccessible  on  account  of  its  steep,  rocky  banks;  they  accord- 
ingly followed  up  the  stream  in  search  of  a  place  where  water  could  be 
procured.  At  an  estimated  distance  of  12  miles  they  came  upon  a  side 
canyon,  down  which  they  succeeded  in  descending  with  their  animals, 
and  procuring  a  supply  of  water.  They  camped  at  the  bottom  of  this 
ravine  on  the  night  of  the  23d  of  August  and  on  the  morning  of  the  24th 
started  to  ascend  the  right  bank  to  the  table-land.  In  making  this  ascent 
they  were  attacked  by  Indians,  and  Capt.  Baker,  being  in  advance,  was 
killed  at  the  first  fire.  The  two  remaining  men,  James  White  and  Henry 
Stroll,  after  ascertaining  the  fate  of  their  comrade,  fought  their  way  back 
into  the  canyon,  and,  getting  beyond  the  reach  of  the  Indians,  hastily  un- 
packed their  animals,  securing  their  arms  and  a  small  supply  of  provisions, 
and  proceeded  on  foot  down  to  the  banks  of  Grand  River.  Here  they  con- 
structed a  raft  of  dry  cottonwood,  composed  of  three  sticks  10  feet  in  length 


THE  GRAND  CANYON.  17 

and  8  inches  in  diameter,  securely  tied  together  by  lariat  ropes,  and,  having 
stored  away  their  arms  and  provisions,  they  embarked  at  midnight  on  their 
adventurous  voyage. 

The  following  morning,  being  on  the  25th  of  August,  they  made  a  landing, 
repaired  their  raft  by  some  additional  pieces  of  dry  cedar,  and  continued  on 
their  course.  The  river  here  was  about  200  yards  wide,  flowing  regularly  at 
a  rate  of  2 X  or  3  miles  per  hour.  According  to  their  estimate,  they  reached 
the  mouth  of  Green  River  and  entered  the  main  Colorado  30  miles  from  the 
point  of  starting.  Below  the  junction  the  stream  narrows  and  is  confined 
between  perpendicular  rocky  walls,  gradually  increasing  in  elevation.  At 
an  estimated  distance  of  40  miles  from  Green  River  they  passed  the  mouth 
of  the  San  Juan,  both  streams  being  here  hemmed  in  by  perpendicular  walls. 
From  this  point  the  canyon  was  continued,  with  only  occasional  breaks 
formed  by  small  side  canyons  equally  inaccessible  with  the  main  chasm. 
Still  they  experienced  no  difficulty  in  continuing  their  voyage  and  were 
elated  with  the  prospect  of  soon  reaching  the  settlements  on  the  Colorado 
below  the  Grand  Canyon. 

On  the  28th,  being  the  fourth  day  of  their  journey,  they  encountered  the 
first  severe  rapids,  in  passing  one  of  which  Henry  Stroll  was  washed  off  and 
sank  in  a  whirlpool  below.  The  small  stock  of  provisions  was  also  lost,  and 
when  White  emerged  from  the  foaming  rapids  he  found  himself  alone, 
without  food,  and  with  gloomy  prospects  before  him  for  continuing  his 
adventurous  journey.  His  course  now  led  through  the  sullen  depths  of  the 
Great  Canyon,  which  was  a  succession  of  fearful  rapids,  blocked  up  with 
masses  of  rock,  over  which  his  frail  raft  thumped  and  whirled,  so  that  he  had 
to  adopt  the  precaution  of  tying  himself  fast  to  the  rocking  timbers.  In 
passing  one  of  these  rapids  his  raft  parted  and  he  was  forced  to  hold  on  to 
the  fragments  by  main  strength  until  he  effected  a  landing  below  in  a  shallow 
eddy  where  he  succeeded,  standing  waist  deep  in  water,  in  making  neces- 
sary repairs,  and  started  again.  One  can  hardly  imagine  the  gloomy 
feelings  of  this  lone  traveler,  with  no  human  voice  to  cheer  his  solitude, 
hungry,  yet  hopeful  and  resolute,  closed  in  on  every  side  by  the  beetling 
cliffs  that  shut  out  sunlight  for  the  greater  part  of  the  long  summer  day, 
drenched  to  the  skin,  sweeping  down  the  resistless  current,  shooting  over 
foaming  rapids,  and  whirling  below  in  tumultuous  whirlpools,  ignorant  of 
what  fearful  cataracts  might  yet  be  on  his  unswerving  track,  down  which 
he  must  plunge  to  almost  certain  destruction;  still,  day  after  day,  buoyed 
up  with  the  hope  of  finally  emerging  from  his  prison  walls  and  feasting  his 
eyes  on  an  open  country  with  shaded  groves,  green  fields,  and  human 
habitations. 

The  mouth  of  the  Colorado  Chiquito  was  passed  on  the  fourth  day  in  the 
evening,  the  general  appearance  of  which  was  particularly  noted,  as  he  was 
here  entangled  in  an  eddy  for  two  hours,  until  rescued,  as  he  says,  "by  the 
direct  interposition  of  Providence."  The  general  course  of  the  river  was 
noted  as  very  crooked,  with  numerous  sharp  turns,  the  river  on  every  side 
being  shut  in  by  precipitous  walls  of  "white  sand  rock."  These  walls 
present  a  smooth,  perpendicular,  and  occasionally  overhanging  surface, 
extending  upward  to  a  variable  height  and  showing  a  distinct  line  of  high- 
water  mark  30  to  40  feet  above  the  then  water  level. 
102360°— S.  Doc.  42,  G5-1 2 


1 8  THE   GRAND   CANYON. 

His  estimate  of  the  average  height  of  the  canyon  was  3,000  feet,  the  upper 
edge  of  which  flared  out  about  halfway  from  the  bottom,  thus  presenting  a 
rugged  crest.  The  last  two  days  in  the  canyon  dark-colored  igneous  rocks 
took  the  place  of  the  white  "sandstone,"  which  finally  showed  distinct 
breaks  on  either  side,  till  he  reached  a  more  open  country,  containing  small 
patches  of  bottom  land  and  inhabited  by  bands  of  Indians.  Here  he  suc- 
ceeded in  procuring  a  scanty  supply  of  mesquite  bread,  barely  sufficient 
to  sustain  life  till  he  reached  Callville  on  the  8th  of  September,  just  14 
days  from  the  time  of  starting,  during  7  of  which  he  had  no  food  of  any 
description. 

When  finally  rescued  this  man  presented  a  pitiable  object,  emaciated  and 
haggard  from  abstinence,  his  bare  feet  literally  flayed  from  constant  exposure 
to  drenching  water,  aggravated  by  occasional  scorchings  of  a  vertical  sun; 
his  mental  faculties,  though  still  sound,  liable  to  wander  and  verging  close 
on  the  brink  of  insanity.  Being,  however,  of  a  naturally  strong  constitu- 
tion, he  soon  recovered  his  usual  health  and  is  now  a  stout,  hearty,  thick-set 
man.  His  narrative  throughout  bears  all  the  evidence  of  entire  reliability 
and  is  sustained  by  collateral  evidence,  so  that  there  is  not  the  least  reason 
to  doubt  that  he  actually  accomplished  the  journey  in  the  manner  and  in 
the  time  mentioned  by  him. 

CONCLUSIONS. 

The  following  may  be  summed  up  as  some  of  the  new  facts  to  be  derived 
from  this  remarkable  voyage  as  additions  to  our  present  geographical 
knowledge  of  the  hydrography  of  the  Colorado  River: 

First.  The  actual  location  of  the  mouth  of  the  San  Juan,  40  miles  below 
Green  River  junction,  and  its  entrance  by  a  canyon  continuous  with  that 
of  the  Colorado. 

Second.  From  the  mouth  of  the  San  Juan  to  the  Colorado  Chiquito,  three 
days'  travel  in  the  swiftest  portion  of  the  current,  allowing  a  rate  of  4  miles 
per  hour  for  15  hours,  or  60  miles  per  day,  would  give  an  estimated  distance 
of  180  miles,  including  the  most  inaccessible  portion  of  the  Great  Canyon. 

Third.  From  Colorado  Chiquito  to  Callville  10  days'  travel  was  expended. 
As  this  portion  of  the  route  was  more  open  and  probably  comprised  long 
stretches  of  still  water,  it  would  not  be  safe  to  allow  a  distance  of  more  than 
30  miles  per  day,  or  300  miles  for  this  interval.  Thus  the  whole  distance 
traveled  would  amount  to  550  miles,  or  something  over  500  miles  from  Grand 
River  junction  to  head  of  steamboat  navigation  at  Callville. 

Fourth.  The  absence  of  any  distinct  cataract  or  perpendicular  falls 
would  seem  to  warrant  the  conclusion  that  in  time  of  high  water  by  proper 
appliances  in  the  way  of  boats,  good,  resolute  oarsmen,  and  provisions 
secured  in  waterproof  bags  the  same  passage  might  be  safely  made  and  the 
actual  course  of  the  river,  with  its  peculiar  geological  features,  properly 
determined. 

Fifth.  The  construction  of  bridges  by  a  single  span  would  be  rendered 
difficult  of  execution  on  account  of  the  usual  flaring  shape  of  the  upper 
summits;  possibly,  however,  points  might  be  found  where  the  high  mesas 
come  near  together. 


THE   GRAND   CANYON.  19 

Sixth.  The  estimated  average  elevation  of  the  canyon  at  3,000  feet  is  less 
than  that  given  on  the  authority  of  Ives  and  Newberry,  but  may  be  nearer 
the  actual  truth  as  the  result  of  more  continuous  observation. 

Seventh.  The  width  of  the  river  at  its  narrowest  points  was  estimated  at 
100  feet  and  the  line  of  high- water  mark  30  to  40  feet  above  the  average  stage 
in  August. 

Eighth.  The  long-continued  uniformity  of  the  geological  formation 
termed  "white  sandstone "  (probably  Cretaceous),  is  remarkable,  but  under 
this  term  may  have  been  comprised  some  of  the  lower  stratified  formations. 
The  contrast  on  reaching  the  dark,  igneous  rocks  was  so  marked  that  it  could 
not  fail  to  be  noticed. 

Ninth.  Any  prospect  for  useful  navigation  up  or  down  the  canyon  during 
the  season  of  high  water,  or  transportation  of  lumber  from  the  upper  pine 
regions  of  Green  or  Grand  Rivers  could  not  be  regarded  as  feasible,  con- 
sidering the  long  distance  and  the  inaccessible  character  of  the  river  margin 
for  the  greater  part  of  its  course. 

Tenth.  No  other  satisfactory  method  of  exploration,  except  along  the 
course  of  the  river,  could  be  adopted  to  determine  its  actual  course  and 
peculiar  natural  features,  and  James  White,  as  the  pioneer  of  this  enterprise, 
will  probably  retain  the  honor  of  being  the  only  man  who  has  traversed 
through  its  whole  course  the  Great  Canyon  of  the  Colorado  and  lived  to 
recount  his  observations  on  this  perilous  voyage. 


CALHOUN'S  STATEMENT. 

In  many  respects  Maj.  Calhoun's  account  of  White's  experi- 
ence is  the  same  as  the  narrative  published  in  Dr.  Bell's  book, 
New  Tracks  in  North  America.  The  latter  report  is  generally 
attributed  to  Dr.  Parry,  and  Dr.  Bell  himself  says  it  was  pre- 
pared by  Maj.  Calhoun  from  notes  taken  by  Dr.  Parry;  but,  as 
will  be  seen  in  perusing  Calhoun's  own  story,  that  gentleman 
takes  full  credit  for  the  article  and  says  explicitly  that  he 
obtained  his  facts  from  White  himself.  The  account  herewith 
reproduced  is  taken  from  the  pages  of  a  small  book  entitled 
"Wonderful  Adventures,"  which  was  published  soon  after 
White's  trip  by  William  B.  Evans  &  Co.,  of  Philadelphia,  of 
which  city  Calhoun  was  a  resident.  It  is  the  first  of  a  series  of 
adventures  of  which  the  work  is  composed  and  bears  the  title 
"  Passage  of  the  Grand  Canyon  of  the  Colorado,"  by  A.  R. 
Calhoun.  The  first  portion  of  the  article  is  a  general  descrip- 
tion of  the  Colorado  River  region,  and  is  omitted  here. 

Following  is  the  story  in  so  far  as  it  deals  with  White's  journey : 

Twenty  years  ago  the  trapper  and  the  hunter  were  the  romantic  charac- 
ters of  the  far  West.  They  still  figure  in  fiction,  and  there  is  a  fascination 
about  their  daring  deeds  which  is  scarcely  undeserved.  They  have  trapped 
on  every  stream  and  hunted  on  every  mountain  side  despite  the  opposition 
of  the  Indian  and  the  barrier  of  winter  snows.  They  have  formed  the 
skirmish  line  of  the  great  army  of  occupation  which  is  daily  pushing  west- 
ward, and  they  have  taught  the  savage  to  respect  the  white  man 's  courage 
and  to  fear  the  white  man 's  power. 

While  the  field  for  the  trapper  and  hunter  has  been  gradually  growing 
less  another  class  of  adventurers  has  come  into  existence — the  prospectors 
in  search  of  precious  metals.  Within  the  last  quarter  of  a  century  these 
men  have  traversed  every  mountain  slope  from  the  rugged  peaks  of  British 
Columbia  to  the  rich  plateaus  of  Old  Mexico  and  have  searched  the  sands 
of  every  stream  from  the  Mississippi  to  the  shores  of  the  Pacific,  stimulated 
by  the  same  hope  of  reward  that  led  the  early  Spaniards  to  explore  inhos- 
pitable wilds  in  their  search  for  an  Eldorado.  Could  the  varied  and  adven- 
turous experiences  of  these  searchers  for  gold  be  written  we  should  have  a 
record  of  daring  that  no  fiction  could  approach,  and  the  very  sight  of  gold 
would  suggest  to  our  minds  some  story  of  hairbreadth  escapes. 

It  has  fallen  to  the  lot  of  one  of  these  prospectors  to  be  the  hero  of  an 
adventure  more  thrilling  than  any  heretofore  recorded,  while  at  the  same 

20 


THE   GRAND   CANYON.  21 

time  he  has  solved  a  geographical  problem  which  has  long  attracted  the 
attention  of  the  learned  at  home  and  abroad,  who  could  but  theorize  before 
his  journey  as  to  the  length  and  nature  of  the  stupendous  chasms  or  canyons 
through  which  the  Colorado  cleaves  its  central  course.  While  on  the 
survey  before  referred  to  and  while  stopping  for  a  few  days  at  Fort  Mojave, 
Dr.  W.  A.  Bell,  Dr.  C.  C.  Parry,  and  myself  met  this  man,  whose  name  is 
James  White,  and  from  his  lips,  the  only  living  man  who  had  actually 
traversed  its  formidable  depths,  we  learned  the  story  of  the  Great  Canyon. 

James  White  now  lives  at  Callville,  Arizona  Territory,  the  present  head 
of  navigation  on  the  Colorado  River.  He  is  32  years  of  age,  and  in  person 
is  a  good  type,  of  the  Saxon,  being  of  medium  height  and  heavy  build, 
with  light  hair  and  blue  eyes.  He  is  a  man  of  average  intelligence,  simple 
and  unassuming  in  his  manner  and  address,  and  without  any  of  the  swagger 
or  bravado  peculiar  to  the  majority  of  frontier  men.  Like  thousands  of 
our  young  men,  well  enough  off  at  home,  he  grew  weary  of  the  slow  but 
certain  methods  of  earning  his  bread  by  regular  employment  at  a  stated 
salary.  He  had  heard  of  men  leaping  into  wealth  at  a  single  bound  in  the 
western  gold  fields,  and  for  years  he  yearned  to  go  to  the  land  where  fortune 
was  so  lavish  of  her  favors.  Accordingly,  he  readily  consented  to  be  one 
of  a  party  from  his  neighborhood  which,  in  the  spring  of  1867,  started  for 
the  plains  and  the  gold  fields  beyond.  When  they  left  Fort  Dodge,  on  the 
Arkansas  River,  April  13,  1867,  the  party  consisted  of  four  men,  of  whom 
Capt.  Baker,  an  old  miner  and  an  ex-officer  of  the  Confederate  Army,  was 
the  acknowledged  leader.  The  destination  of  this  little  party  was  the  San 
Juan  Valley,  west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  about  the  gold  fields  of  which 
prospectors  spoke  in  the  most  extravagant  terms,  stating  that  they  were 
deterred  from  working  the  rich  placers  of  the  San  Juan  only  by  fear  of  the 
Indians. 

Baker  and  his  companions  reached  Colorado  City,  at  the  foot  of  Pikes 
Peak,  in  safety.  This  place  was  and  still  is  the  depot  for  supplying  the 
miners  who  work  the  diggings  scattered  through  the  South  Park  and  is  the 
more  important  from  being  situated  at  the  entrance  to  the  Ute  Pass,  through 
which  there  is  a  wagon  road  crossing  the  Rocky  Mountains  and  descending 
to  the  plateau  beyond.  The  people  of  Colorado  City  tried  to  dissuade 
Baker  from  what  they  considered  a  rash  project,  but  he  was  determined  to 
carry  out  his  original  plan.  These  representations,  however,  affected  one 
of  the  party  so  much  that  he  left;  but  the  others,  Capt.  Baker,  James  White, 
and  Henry  Stroll,  completed  their  outfit  for  the  prospecting  tour. 

The  journey  was  undertaken  on  foot,  with  two  pack  mules  to  carry  the 
provisions,  mining  tools,  and  the  blankets  they  considered  necessary  for  the 
expedition.  On  the  25th  of  May  they  left  Colorado  City  and,  crossing  the 
Rocky  Mountains  through  the  Ute  Pass,  entered  South  Park,  being  still  on 
the  Atlantic  slope  of  the  continent .  After  traveling  90  miles  across  the  park 
they  reached  the  Upper  Arkansas,  near  the  Twin  Lakes.  They  then  crossed 
the  Snowy  Range,  or  Sierra  Madre,  and  descended  toward  the  west.  Turn- 
ing southerly  they  passed  around  the  headwaters  of  the  Rio  Grande  del 
Norte,  and  after  a  journey  of  400  miles  from  Colorado  City  they  reached  the 
Animas  Branch  of  the  San  Juan  River,  which  flows  into  the  Great  Colorado 
from  the  east. 


22  THE   GRAND   CANYON. 

They  were  now  in  the  land  where  their  hopes  centered,  and  to  reach 
which  they  had  crossed  plains  and  mountains  and  forded  rapid  streams, 
leaving  the  nearest  abodes  of  the  white  man  hundreds  of  miles  to  the  east. 
Their  work  of  prospecting  for  gold  began  in  the  Animas,  and  though  they 
were  partially  successful,  the  result  did  not  by  any  means  answer  their 
expectations.  They  therefore  moved  still  farther  to  the  west,  crossing  the 
Dolores  Branch  of  Grand  River  to  the  Mancos  Branch  of  the  San  Juan. 
Following  the  Mancos  to  its  mouth,  they  crossed  to  the  left  bank  of  the 
San  Juan  and  began  their  search  in  the  sands.  There  was  gold  there,  but 
not  in  the  quantity  they  expected;  so  they  gradually  moved  west  along 
the  beautiful  valley  for  200  miles,  when  they  found  the  San  Juan  dis- 
appeared between  the  lofty  walls  of  a  deep  and  gloomy  canyon.  To  avoid 
this  they  again  forded  the  river  to  the  right  bank  and  struck  across  rough, 
timbered  country,  directing  their  course  toward  the  great  Colorado.  Hav- 
ing traveled  through  this  rough  country  for  a  distance  estimated  at  50  miles 
they  reached  Grand  River,  being  still  above  the  junction  of  Green  River, 
the  united  waters  of  which  two  streams  form  the  Colorado  proper.  At  the 
point  where  they  struck  the  river  the  banks  were  masses  of  perpendicular 
rock,  down  which  they  could  gaze  at  the  coveted  water,  dashing  and  foam- 
ing like  an  agitated  white  band,  200  feet  below.  Men  and  animals  were 
now  suffering  for  water,  so  they  pushed  up  the  stream  along  the  uneven 
edge  of  the  chasm,  hoping  to  find  a  place  where  they  could  descend  to  the 
river.  After  a  day  spent  in  clambering  over  and  around  the  huge  rocks 
that  impeded  their  advance,  they  came  to  a  side  canyon,  where  a  tributary 
joined  the  main  stream,  to  which  they  succeeded  in  descending  with  their 
animals  and  thus  obtained  the  water  of  which  all  stood  so  much  in  need. 

The  night  of  the  23d  of  August  they  encamped  at  the  bottom  of  the  Canyon 
where  they  found  plenty  of  fuel  and  grass  in  abundance  for  their  animals. 
So  they  sat  around  the  camp  fire  lamenting  their  failure  in  the  San  Juan 
country,  and  Stroll  began  to  regret  that  they  had  undertaken  the  expedi- 
tion. But  Baker,  who  was  a  brave,  sanguine  fellow,  spoke  of  placers  up  the 
river,  about  which  he  had  heard,  and  promised  his  companions  that  all 
their  hopes  should  be  realized  and  that  they  should  return  to  their  homes  to 
enjoy  their  gains  and  to  laugh  at  the  trials  of  the  trip.  So  glowingly  did  he 
picture  the  future  that  his  companions  even  speculated  as  to  how  they 
should  spend  their  princely  fortunes  when  they  returned  to  the  "States." 
Baker  sang  songs  of  home  and  hope,  and  the  others  lent  their  voices  to  the 
chorus  till  far  in  the  night,  when,  unguarded,  they  sank  to  sleep  to  dream  of 
coming  opulence  and  to  rise  refreshed  for  the  morrow 's  journey. 

Early  next  morning  they  breakfasted  and  began  the  ascent  of  the  side 
canyon  up  the  bank  opposite  to  that  by  which  they  had  entered  it.  Baker 
was  in  advance,  with  his  rifle  slung  at  his  back,  gayly  springing  up  the  rocks 
toward  the  table-land  above.  Behind  him  came  White  and  Stroll,  with  the 
mules  brought  up  the  rear.  Nothing  disturbed  the  stillness  of  the  beautiful 
summer  morning  but  the  tramping  of  the  mules  and  the  short,  heavy  breath- 
ing of  the  climbers.  They  had  ascended  about  half  the  distance  to  the  top 
when,  stopping  a  moment  to  rest,  suddenly  the  war  whoop  of  a  band  of 
savages  rang  out,  sounding  as  if  every  rock  had  a  demon's  voice.  Simulta- 
neously with  the  first  whoop  a  shower  of  arrows  and  bullets  was  poured  into 


GRAND   CANYON.  23 

the  little  party.  With  the  first  fire  Baker  fell  against  a  rock;  but,  rallying 
for  a  moment,  he  unslung  his  rifle  and  fired  at  the  Indians,  who  began  to 
show  themselves  in  large  numbers,  and  then,  with  blood  flowing  from  his 
mouth,  he  fell  to  the  ground.  White,  firing  at  the  Indians  as  he  advanced, 
and  followed  by  Stroll,  hurried  to  the  aid  of  his  wounded  leader.  Baker 
with  an  effort  turned  to  his  comrades  and  in  a  voice  still  strong,  said :  "  Back, 
boys;  back;  save  yourselves;  I  am  dying."  To  the  credit  of  White  and 
Stroll  be  it  said  they  faced  the  savages  and  fought  till  the  last  tremor  of  the 
powerful  frame  told  that  the  gallant  Baker  was  dead.  Then  slowly  they  be- 
gan to  retreat,  followed  by  the  exultant  Indians,  who,  stopping  to  strip  and 
mutilate  the  dead  body  in  their  path,  gave  the  white  men  a  chance  to  secure 
their  animals  and  retrace  their  steps  into  the  side  canyon  beyond  the  imme- 
diate reach  of  the  Indians'  arrows. 

Here  they  held  a  hurried  conversation  as  to  the  best  course  they  could 
pursue.  To  the  east  for  300  miles  stretched  an  uninhabited  country,  over 
which  if  they  attempted  escape  in  that  direction  the  Indians,  like  blood- 
hounds, would  follow  their  track.  North,  south,  and  west  was  the  Colo- 
rado with  its  tributaries,  all  flowing  at  the  bottom  of  deep  chasms,  across 
which  it  would  be  impossible  for  men  or  animals  to  travel.  Their  delibera- 
tions were  necessarily  short,  and  resulted  in  their  deciding  to  abandon 
their  animals,  first  securing  their  arms  and  a  small  stock  of  provisions  and 
the  ropes  of  the  mules.  Through  the  side  canyon  they  traveled  due  west 
for  four  hours  and  emerged  at  last  on  a  low  strip  of  bottom  land  on  Grand 
River,  above  which  for  2,000  feet  on  either  bank  the  cold  gray  walls  rose 
to  block  their  path,  leaving  to  them  but  one  avenue  of  escape,  the  foaming 
current  of  the  river  flowing  along  the  dark  channel  through  unknown 
dangers. 

They  found  considerable  quantities  of  driftwood  along  the  banks,  from 
which  they  collected  enough  to  enable  them  to  construct  a  raft  capable  of 
floating  themselves,  with  their  arms  and  provisions.  The  raft  when  fin- 
ished consisted  of  three  sticks  of  cotton  wood  about  10  feet  in  length  and 
8  inches  in  diameter,  lashed  firmly  together  with  the  mule  ropes.  Pro- 
curing two  stout  poles  with  which  to  guide  the  raft  and  fastening  the  bag 
of  provisions  to  the  logs,  they  waited  for  midnight  and  the  waning  moon 
so  as  to  drift  off  unnoticed  by  the  Indians.  They  did  not  consider  that 
even  the  sun  looked  down  into  that  chasm  for  but  one  short  hour  out  of 
the  twenty-four,  leaving  it  for  the  rest  of  the  day  to  the  angry  waters  and 
blackening  shadows,  and  that  the  faint  moonlight  reaching  the  bottom  of 
the  canyon  would  hardly  serve  to  reveal  the  horror  of  their  situation.  Mid- 
night came,  according  to  their  calculation  of  the  dark,  dreary  hours,  and 
then,  seizing  the  poles,  they  untied  the  rope  that  held  the  raft,  which, 
tossed  about  by  the  current,  rushed  through  the  yawning  canyon  on  the 
adventurous  voyage  to  an  unknown  landing.  Through  the  long  night 
they  clung  to  the  raft  as  it  dashed  against  half -concealed  rocks  or  whirled 
about  like  a  plaything  in  some  eddy,  whose  white  foam  was  perceptible 
even  in  the  intense  darkness. 

They  prayed  for  the  daylight,  which  came  at  last,  and  with  it  a  smoother 
current  and  less  rugged  banks,  though  the  canyon  walls  appeared  to  have 
increased  in  height.  Early  in  the  morning  (Aug.  25)  they  found  a  spot 


24  THE   GRAND   CANYON. 

where  they  could  make  a  landing,  and  went  ashore.  After  eating  a  little  of 
their  water-soaked  provisions  they  returned  and  strengthened  their  raft  by 
the  addition  of  some  light  pieces  of  cedar  which  had  been  lodged  in  clefts 
of  the  rock  by  recent  floods.  White  estimates  the  width  of  the  river  where 
they  landed  at  200  yards  and  the  current  at  3  miles  per  hour.  After  a 
short  stay  at  this  place  they  again  embarked,  and  during  the  rest  of  the 
day  they  had  no  small  difficulty  in  avoiding  the  rocks  and  whirlpools  that 
met  them  at  every  bend  of  the  river. 

In  the  afternoon,  and  after  having  floated  over  a  distance  estimated 
at  30  miles  from  the  point  of  starting,  they  reached  the  mouth  of  Green 
River,  or,  rather,  where  the  Green  and  the  Grand  unite  to  form  the  Colo- 
rado proper.  Here  the  canyons  of  both  streams  combined  into  one  of 
but  little  greater  width,  but  far  surpassing  either  in  the  height  and  grandeur 
of  its  walls.  At  the  junction  the  walls  were  estimated  at  4,000  feet  in 
height,  but  detached  pinnacles  rose  1,000  feet  higher  from  amidst  huge 
masses  of  detached  rock  confusedly  piled,  like  grand  monuments,  to  com- 
memorate this  meeting  of  the  waters.  The  fugitives  felt  the  sublimity  of 
the  scene,  and  in  contemplating  its  stupendous  and  unearthly  grandeur 
they  forgot  for  the  time  their  own  sorrows. 

The  night  of  the  day  upon  which  they  entered  the  Great  Canyon,  and, 
indeed,  upon  nearly  all  the  subsequent  nights  of  the  voyage,  the  raft  was 
fastened  to  a  loose  rock  or  hauled  up  on  some  narrow  strip  of  beach,  where 
they  rested  until  daylight  next  morning. 

As  they  floated  down  the  Canyon  the  gray  sandstone  walls  increased  in 
height,  the  lower  section  being  smooth  from  the  action  of  floods  and  the 
rugged  perpendicular  walls  rising  toward  the  far-off  sky,  which  seemed  to 
rest  on  the  glistening  summits.  Here  and  there  a  stunted  cedar  clung  to 
the  cliffside  2,000  feet  overhead,  where  far  beyond  which  the  narrow  blue 
streak  of  sky  was  perceptible.  No  living  thing  was  in  sight,  for  even  the 
wing  of  bird  which  could  pass  the  chasms  above  never  fanned  the  dark 
air  in  those  subterranean  depths — naught  to  gaze  on  but  their  own  pale 
faces  and  the  cold,  gray  walls  that  hemmed  them  in  and  mocked  their 
escape.  Here  and  there  the  raft  shot  past  side  canyons,  black  and  for- 
bidding, like  cells  set  in  the  walls  of  a  mighty  prison.  Baker  had  in- 
formed his  comrades  as  to  the  geography  of  the  country,  and  while  floating 
down  they  remembered  that  Callville  was  at  the  mouth  of  the  Canyon, 
which  could  not  be  far  off — "such  wonderful  walls  could  not  continue 
much  farther."  Then  hope  came  with  the  prospect  of  deliverance  from 
their  frightful  position.  A  few  days  would  take  them  to  Callville.  Their 
provisions  could  be  made  to  last  five  days.  So  these  two  men,  thus  shut 
in  from  the  world — buried,  as  it  were,  in  the  very  bowels  of  the  earth,  in 
the  midst  of  great  unknown  deserts,  began  to  console  themselves  and  even 
to  jest  at  their  situation. 

Forty  miles  below  their  entrance  into  the  Great  Canyon  they  reached 
the  mouth  of  the  San  Juan  River.  They  attempted  to  enter  it,  but  its 
swift  current  cast  them  back.  The  perpendicular  walls,  high  as  those  of 
the  Colorado,  with  the  water  flowing  from  bank  to  bank,  forbade  their 
abandoning  their  raft  to  attempt  to  escape  in  that  direction.  So  they 
floated  away.  At  every  bend  of  the  river  it  seemed  as  if  they  were  de- 


THE  GRAND   CANYON.  25 

scending  deeper  into  the  earth;  the  walls  came  closer  together  above  them, 
thickening  the  black  shadows  and  redoubling  the  echoes  that  went  up 
from  the  foaming  waters. 

Four  days  had  elapsed  since  they  embarked  on  the  frail  raft;  it  was  now 
August  28.  So  far  they  had  been  constantly  wet,  but  the  water  was  com- 
paratively warm  and  the  current  more  regular  than  they  could  have  ex- 
pected. Stroll  had  taken  upon  himself  to  steer  the  raft,  and,  against  the 
advice  of  White,  he  often  set  one  end  of  the  pole  against  the  bank  or  some 
opposing  rock  and  then  leaned  with  the  other  end  against  his  shoulder  to 
push  the  raft  away.  As  yet  they  had  seen  no  natural  bridge  spanning  the 
chasm,  nor  had  fall  or  cataract  prevented  their  safe  advance.  But  about 
3  o'clock  on  the  afternoon  of  the  aSth  they  heard  the  deep  roar  of  a  waterfall 
in  front.  They  felt  the  raft  agitated,  then  whirled  along  with  frightful 
rapidity  toward  a  wall  that  seemed  to  bar  all  further  progress.  As  they 
approached  the  cliff  the  river  made  a  sharp  bend,  around  which  the  raft 
swept,  disclosing  to  them  in  a  long  vista  the  water  lashed  into  foam  as  it 
poured  through  a  narrow,  precipitous  gorge  caused  by  huge  masses  of  rock 
detached  from  the  main  wall.  There  was  no  time  to  think.  The  logs 
strained  as  if  they  would  break  their  fastenings.  The  waves  dashed  around 
the  men,  and  the  raft  was  buried  in  the  seething  waters.  White  clung  to 
the  logs  with  the  grip  of  death.  His  comrade  stood  up  for  an  instant  with 
the  pole  in  his  hands  as  if  to  guide  the  raft  from  the  rocks  against  which  it 
was  plunging;  but  he  had  scarcely  straightened  himself  before  the  raft 
seemed  to  leap  down  a  chasm,  and  amid  horrible  sounds  White  heard  a 
shriek  that  thrilled  him.  Turning  his  head,  he  saw  through  the  mist  and 
spray  the  form  of  his  comrade  tossed  for  an  instant  on  the  water,  then  sink- 
ing out  of  sight  in  the  whirlpool. 

White  still  clung  to  the  logs,  and  it  was  only  when  the  raft  seemed  to  be 
floating  smoothly  and  the  sound  of  the  rapids  was  behind  that  he  dared  to 
look  up;  then  it  was  to  find  himself  alone,  the  provisions  lost,  and  the 
shadows  of  the  black  Canyon  warning  him  of  the  approaching  night.  A 
feeling  of  despair  seized  him,  and,  clasping  his  hands,  he  prayed  for  the 
death  he  was  fleeing  from.  He  was  made  cognizant  of  more  immediate 
danger  by  the  shaking  of  his  raft — the  logs  were  separating.  Then  he 
worked  and  succeeded  in  effecting  a  landing  near  some  flat  rocks,  where 
he  made  his  raft  fast  for  the  night.  After  this  he  sat  down  to  spend  the 
long,  gloomy  hours  in  contemplating  the  horror  of  his  situation  and  the 
small  chance  of  completing  the  adventurous  voyage  he  had  undertaken. 
He  blamed  himself  for  not  having  fought  the  Indians  till  he  had  fallen  by 
the  side  of  Baker.  He  might  have  escaped  through  the  San  Juan  Valley 
and  the  mountains  beyond  to  the  settlements.  Had  he  done  so  he  would 
have  returned  to  his  home  and  rested  satisfied  with  his  experience  as  a 
prospector.  But  when  he  thought  of  home  it  called  up  the  strongest 
inducements  for  life  and  he  resolved  "to  die  hard  and  like  a  man." 

Gradually  the  dawn,  long  perceptible  in  the  upper  world,  began  to  creep 
down  into  the  depths  of  the  chasm  and  gave  him  light  to  strengthen  his 
raft  and  launch  it  again  on  the  treacherous  river.  As  he  floated  down  he 
remembered  the  sad  fate  of  Stroll,  and  took  the  precaution  to  lash  himself 
firmly  to  the  raft  so  as  to  preclude  the  possibility  of  his  being  separated 


26  THE   GRAND   CANYON. 

from  it.  This  forethought  subsequently  saved  his  life.  His  course  through 
the  canyon  was  now  down  a  succession  of  rapids  blocked  up  by  masses  of 
rock  over  which  his  frail  raft  thumped  and  whirled,  at  times  wholly  sub- 
merged by  the  foaming  water. 

At  one  of  these  rapids,  in  the  distance  of  about  a  hundred  yards,  he  thinks 
the  river  must  have  fallen  between  30  and  40  feet.  In  going  over  this 
place  the  logs  composing  the  raft  became  separated  at  the  upper  end, 
spreading  out  like  a  fan,  and  White  was  thrown  into  the  water.  He  strug- 
gled to  the  side  by  means  of  his  rope,  and  with  a  desperate  strength  held 
the  logs  together  till  they  floated  into  calmer  water,  when  he  succeeded  in 
refastening  them. 

White's  trials  were  not  yet  at  an  end,  and  in  relating  the  following  inci- 
dent he  showed  the  only  sign  of  emotion  exhibited  during  his  long  narrative. 

About  4  miles  below  where  the  raft  separated  he  reached  the  mouth  of  a 
large  stream,  which  he  has  since  learned  was  the  Colorado  Chiquito.  The 
canyon  through  which  it  enters  the  main  river  is  very  much  like  that  of 
the  San  Juan,  and  though  it  does  not  discharge  so  large  a  body  of  water  the 
current  is  much  more  rapid  and  sweeps  across  the  great  Colorado,  causing, 
in  a  deep  indentation  in  the  opposite  bank,  a  large  and  dangerous  whirlpool. 
White  saw  this  and  tried  to  avoid  it,  but  he  was  too  weak  for  the  task. 
His  raft,  borne  by  the  current  of  the  Colorado  proper,  rushed  down  with 
such  force  that,  aided  by  his  paddle,  he  hoped  to  pass  the  waters  that 
appeared  to  sweep  at  right  angles  across  his  course  from  the  Chiquito. 
When  he  reached  the  mouth  of  the  latter  stream  the  raft  suddenly  stopped, 
and,  swinging  around  for  an  instant  as  if  balanced  on  a  point,  it  yielded  to 
the  current  of  the  Chiquito  and  was  swept  into  the  whirlpool. 

White  felt  now  that  all  further  exertions  was  useless,  and,  dropping  his 
paddle,  he  clasped  his  hands  and  fell  upon  the  raft.  He  heard  the  gurgling 
waters  around  him,  and  every  moment  he  felt  that  he  must  be  plunged 
into  the  boiling  vortex.  He  waited,  he  thinks,  for  some  minutes,  when, 
feeling  a  strange,  swimming  sensation,  he  looked  up  to  find  that  he  was 
circling  around  the  whirlpool,  sometimes  close  to  the  vortex  and  again 
thrown  back  by  some  invisible  cause  to  the  outer  edge,  only  to  whirl  again 
to  the  center. 

Thus  borne  by  the  circling  waters,  he  looked  up,  up,  up  through  the 
mighty  chasm  that  seemed  bending  over  him  as  if  about  to  fall  in.  He  saw 
in  the  blue  belt  of  sky  that  hung  above  him  like  an  ethereal  river  the  red 
tinged  clouds  floating,  and  he  knew  the  sun  was  setting  in  the  upper  world. 
Still  around  the  whirlpool  the  raft  swung  like  a  circular  pendulum,  meas- 
uring the  long  moments  before  expected  death.  He  felt  a  dizzy  sensation 
and  thinks  he  must  have  fainted;  he  knows  he  was  unconscious  for  a  time, 
for,  when  again  he  looked  up,  the  walls,  whose  ragged  summits  towered 
3,000  feet  above  him,  the  red  clouds  had  changed  to  black,  and  the  heavy 
shadows  of  night  had  crept  down  the  canyon. 

Then,  for  the  first  time,  he  remembered  that  there  was  a  Strength  greater 
than  that  of  man,  a  Power  that "  holds  the  ocean  in  the  hollow  of  His  hand. ' ' 
"  I  fell  on  my  knees, "  he  said,  "  and  as  the  raft  swept  around  in  the  current 
I  asked  God  to  aid  me.  I  spoke  as  if  from  my  very  soul  and  said, '  O  God,  if 
there  is  a  way  out  of  this  fearful  place  guide  me  to  it.'" 


THE  GRAND   CANYON.  2J 

Here  White's  voice  became  husky  as  he  narrated  the  circumstances,  and 
his  somewhat  heavy  features  quivered  as  he  related  that  he  presently  felt 
a  different  movement  in  the  raft,  and,  turning  to  look  at  the  whirlpool,  saw 
it  was  some  distance  behind,  and  that  he  was  floating  down  the  smoothest 
current  he  had  yet  seen  in  the  Canyon. 

Below  the  mouth  of  the  Colorado  Chiquito  the  current  was  very  slow,  and 
White  felt  what  he  subsequently  found  to  be  the  case,  viz,  that  the  rapids 
were  past,  though  he  was  not  equally  fortunate  in  guessing  his  proximity 
to  Callville. 

The  course  of  the  river  below  this  he  describes  as  exceedingly  "crooked, 
with  short,  sharp  turns, "  the  view  on  every  side  being  shut  in  by  flat  pre- 
cipitous walls  of  "white  sand  rock."  These  walls  presented  smooth  per- 
pendicular surfaces  as  far  as  the  high-water  level,  which  left  a  distinct 
mark  about  40  feet  above  the  stage  of  the  month  of  August. 

The  highest  part  of  the  Canyon,  White  thinks,  is  between  the  San  Juan 
and  the  Colorado  Chiquito,  where  he  thinks  the  wall  is  more  than  5,000 
feet  in  perpendicular  height,  and  at  a  few  points  far  exceeding  this. 

Dr.  Newberry,  the  geologist  of  Lieut.  Ives's  expedition,  thinks  that  for  a 
long  distance  the  altitude  is  near  7,000  feet.  Correct  altitudes,  however, 
can  only  be  ascertained  by  careful  instrumental  examination. 

The  current  bore  White  from  the  Colorado  Chiquito  slowly  down  the 
main  river.  One,  two,  three,  four  days  had  slowly  passed  since  he  tasted 
food,  and  still  the  current  bore  him  through  the  towering  walls  of  the  canyon. 
Hunger  maddened  him.  His  thoughts  were  of  food,  food,  food;  and  his 
sleeping  moments  were  filled  with  Tantalus-like  dreams.  Once  he  raised 
his  arm  to  open  some  vein  and  draw  nutriment  from  his  own  blood,  but  its 
shriveled,  blistered  condition  frightened  him.  For  hours  .as  he  floated 
down  he  would  sit  looking  into  the  water,  yet  lacking  the  courage  to  make 
the  contemplated  plunge  that  would  rid  him  of  all  earthly  pain. 

The  morning  of  the  fifth  day  since  he  had  tasted  food  he  saw  a  flat  strip  of 
shore  with  bushes  growing  on  it,  and  by  a  superhuman  effort  he  succeeded  in 
reaching  it  with  his  raft.  He  devoured  the  few  green  pods  and  the  leaves  of 
the  bushes,  but  they  only  increased  his  desire  for  more.  The  journey  was 
resumed,  and  he  remembers  two  days  more  of  unbroken  canyon  wall. 

On  the  afternoon  of  the  eleventh  day  of  this  extraordinary  voyage  he  was 
roused  by  hearing  the  sound  of  human  voices,  and,  looking  toward  the 
shore,  he  saw  men  beckoning  to  him.  A  momentary  strength  came  to  his 
arms,  and,  grasping  the  paddle,  he  urged  the  raft  to  the  bank.  On  reaching 
it  he  found  himself  surrounded  by  a  band  of  Yampais  Indians,  who  for 
many  years  have  lived  on  a  low  strip  of  alluvial  land  along  the  bottom  of  the 
Canyon,  the  trail  to  which  from  the  summit  of  the  plateau  is  known  only 
to  themselves. 

One  of  the  Indians  made  fast  the  raft  while  another  seized  White  roughly 
and  dragged  him  up  the  bank.  He  could  not  remonstrate;  his  tongue 
refused  to  give  a  sound,  so  he  pointed  to  his  mouth  and  made  signs  for  food. 
The  fiend  that  pulled  him  up  the  bank  tore  from  his  blistered  shoulders  the 
shreds  that  had  once  been  a  shirt,  and  was  proceeding  to  strip  him  entirely 
when  one  of  the  Indians  interfered,  and,  to  the  credit  of  the  savage  be  it 
said,  pushed  back  his  companion.  He  gave  White  some  meat  and  roasted 


28  THE   GRAND   CANYON. 

mesquite  beans  to  eat,  which  the  famished  man  devoured,  and  after  a  little 
rest  he  made  signs  that  he  wanted  to  go  to  the  nearest  dwellings  of  the  white 
men.  The  Indians  told  him  he  could  reach  them  in  "two  suns"  on  his  raft. 

Early  the  next  morning  he  tottered  to  the  bank  and  pushed  into  the  cur- 
rent. Three  more  long  days  of  hope  and  dread  passed  slowly  by,  and  still 
no  signs  of  friends.  Reason  tottered  and  White  stretched  himself  on  the 
raft,  all  his  energies  exhausted;  life  and  death  were  to  him  alike  indifferent. 

Late  in  the  evening  of  the  third  day  after  leaving  the  Indians,  and  14  days 
from  the  time  of  starting  on  his  perilous  voyage,  White  again  heard  voices, 
accompanied  by  the  rapid  dash  of  oars.  He  understood  the  words,  but  could 
make  no  reply.  He  felt  a  strong  arm  thrown  around  him,  and  he  was  lifted 
into  a  boat,  to  see  manly  bearded  faces  looking  down  on  him  with  pity. 

In  short,  Callville  was  reached  at  last. 

The  people  of  this  Mormon  settlement  had  warm,  generous  hearts,  and, 
like  good  Samaritans,  lavishly  bestowed  every  care  on  the  unfortunate  man 
so  miraculously  thrown  into  their  midst  from  the  bowels  of  the  unknown 
Canyon.  His  constitution,  naturally  strong,  soon  recovered  from  the  ter- 
rible shock,  and  he  told  his  new  friends  his  wonderful  story,  the  first  recital 
of  which  led  them  to  doubt  his  sanity. 


ADDITIONS  TO  PARRY  AND  CALHOUN. 

A  number  of  paragraphs  are  included  in  Maj.  Calhoun's  con- 
tribution to  Dr.  Bell's  book  which  do  not  appear  in  either  of 
the  above  articles.  One  of  these  additions  follows  the  account 
of  White's  experience  in  the  whirlpool,  and  is  as  follows: 

This  statement  is  the  only  information  White  volunteered;  all  the  rest 
was  obtained  by  close  questioning.  One  of  his  friends  who  was  present 
during  the  examination  smiled  when  White  repeated  his  prayer.  He 
noticed  it,  and  said  with  some  feeling:  "It's  true,  Bob,  and  I'm  sure  God 
took  me  out." 

In  another  added  paragraph  reference  is  made  to  testimony 
in  support  of  White's  own  statement,  which  may  be  the  "col- 
lateral evidence"  referred  to  in  Parry's  article.  This  paragraph 
is  most  important  to  White's  case.  It  follows: 

Charles  McAllister,  at  present  an  assistant  in  the  store  of  Mr.  Todd  at 
Fort  Mojave,  was  one  of  the  three  men  who  went  in  the  boat  to  White's 
assistance.  He  said  that  he  never  saw  so  wretched  a  looking  man  as  White 
when  he  first  met  him;  his  feet,  legs,  and  body  were  literally  flayed  from 
exposure  to  drenching  from  water  and  the  scorching  rays  of  the  sun.  His 
reason  was  almost  gone,  his  form  stooped,  and  his  eyes  were  so  hollow  and 
dreary  that  he  looked  like  an  old  and  imbecile  man. 

Mr.  W.  H.  Hardy,  of  Hardyville,  near  Fort  Mojave,  brought  White 
thither  that  he  might  see  and  talk  with  him.  Mr.  Hardy  corroborates  the 
statements  of  McAllister,  and  from  his  knowledge  of  the  country  above 
Callville  says  it  would  be  impossible  for  White  to  have  come  for  any  dis- 
tance by  the  river  without  traveling  through  the  whole  length  of  the  Great 
Canyon  of  the  Colorado.  Mr.  Ballard,  a  mail  contractor,  in  whose  employ- 
ment White  is  now  earning  money  to  take  him  home,  says  he  believes  him 
to  be  a  sober,  truthful  man;  but  apart  from  White's  statement  Ballard  is 
confident  he  must  have  traversed,  and  in  the  manner  stated,  that  hitherto 
unexplored  chasm  which  completes  the  missing  link  between  the  upper 
and  lower  courses  of  the  Great  Colorado. 

The  reader  is  requested  to  bear  in  mind  especially  the  last  of 
these  quotations,  as  it  is  believed  to  have  an  important  bearing 

on  the  issue  and  will  be  referred  to  later. 

29 


ROCKY  MOUNTAIN  HERALD  STORY. 

The  Herald's  account  of  the  White  voyage  appears  in  the 
issue  of  that  paper  for  January  8,  1869,  about  five  months  before 
Maj.  Powell  began  his  exploration.  It  was  dated  from  an  ob- 
scure place  in  New  Mexico,  and  the  writer  appears  to  have  been 
under  the  impression  that  Powell  already  had  started  upon  his 
work.  The  name  of  the  author  has  not  been  preserved,  but 
the  account  differs  in  so  many  respects  from  the  other  narra- 
tives that  it  has  been  decided  to  include  a  large  portion  of  it 
because  it  is  calculated  to  throw  additional  light  on  the  subject. 
It  bears  evidence  of  having  been  compiled  from  original  sources. 

Referring  to  the  prospective  Powell  expedition,  the  writer 
says: 

I  trust  Mr.  Powell's  expedition  is  progressing  favorably  and  that  he  will 
be  able  to  furnish  a  satisfactory  report  to  an  expectant  public,  for  I  can 
assure  you  that  should  he  be  entirely  successful  he  will  accomplish  a  work 
the  magnitude  of  which — leaving  its  danger  entirely  out  of  consideration — 
will  far  surpass  that  of  any  former  exploration  on  the  American  Continent. 

Speaking  of  White's  journey  of  two  years  previous  our  anony- 
mous Herald  historian  said  the  canyon  never  had  been  tra- 
versed before,  and  in  this  connection  added:  "None  of  the 
Indian  tribes  on  the  river  have  either  remembrance  or  tradition 
that  the  voyage  had  ever  previously  been  made." 

Taking  up  the  White  adventure  after  White  and  Stroll  had 
entered  upon  their  turbulent  float  down  the  river,  the  Herald 
tells  us  that  the  two  men  had  little  knowledge  of  the  section  of 
country  they  were  in,  and  says  that  although  they  had  heard 
of  the  Grand  Canyon  they  had  no  definite  idea  either  of  its 
locality  or  its  extent.  There  was  comparatively  little  rough 
water  at  first,  and  all  went  well  for  a  time.  They  were  able  to 
land  at  night,  but  they  had  no  means  of  making  a  fire,  and 
therefore  went  hungry  to  sleep  if  not  to  bed.  The  second  day 
the  water  was  smooth  until  noon.  Then  they  encountered 
rapids,  "swift  and  rocky,"  in  descending  which  they  lost  their 
carbines  and  their  little  store  of  flour— their  only  provisions — 
while  their  revolvers  were  left  too  wet  for  use.  Below  these 

30 


GRAND   CANYON.  31 

rapids  they  found  an  island  on  which  to  spend  the  second  night, 
and  there  they  assuaged  their  hunger  by  eating  screw  beans. 
The  article  proceeds : 

Having  passed  the  night  on  the  island,  our  voyagers  set  out  in  the  morn- 
ing with  their  raft  in  better  condition  than  before  and  with  renewed  hope 
of  soon  getting  to  the  end  of  their  journey  or  at  least  of  reaching  a  poit. 
From  the  size  and  depth  of  the  stream  they  argued  that  Callville  must  be 
near.  After  they  had  floated  for  a  few  hours,  however,  the  sound  of  falling 
water  was  borrfe  to  their  ears,  becoming  more  and  more  distinct  as  they 
proceeded  until  they  became  satisfied  that  they  were  approaching  a  cata- 
ract. Meanwhile  they  had  gradually  and  almost  unconsciously  drifted 
into  a  canyon  with  high  precipitous  walls  which  confined  the  river  within 
a  narrower  channel  than  that  in  which  it  had  coursed  above.  A  hasty 
reconnoissance  convinced  them  that  they  could  not  escape  from  the  gorge 
by  climbing  the  walls,  while  the  current  was  now  so  swift  that  it  was  useless 
to  think  of  turning  back.  White  took  the  precaution  to  lash  himself  to  the 
raft,  but  Stroll  refused  to  take  this  precaution. 

"  I  am  an  old  Mississippi  boatman  and  can  stick  to  the  raft  wherever  she 
goes,"  Stroll  said.  " It  isn't  much  of  a  fall,  and  there  is  no  danger  in  run- 
ning it.  We  had  better  tie  our  revolvers,  however;  they  are  a  little  wet 
now,  and  a  little  more  won't  hurt  them." 

On  swept  the  raft  with  rapidly  increasing  speed;  the  voyagers  silent, 
with  stern,  compressed  lips  and  tense  nerves  boldly  facing  the  peril  which 
they  were  now  powerless  to  avoid.  One  moment  they  were  balanced  on 
the  brink  of  the  cataract,  the  next  they  were  plunged  sheer  12  feet  into 
the  seething  waters  beneath. 

Emerging  at  length,  White  found  himself  alone  upon  the  raft,  which  an 
eddy  had  caught  in  the  rim  of  its  vortex  and  was  whirling  around.  White 
had  been  seriously  disturbed  by  the  shock  of  the  fall,  but  when  he  recovered 
his  self-possession  he  looked  around  for  his  companion  and  quickly  descried 
him  in  mid-channel  some  20  feet  distant  buffeting  the  current  with  feeble 
and  uncertain  stroke.  Shouting  to  him  some  words  of  encouragement  and 
hastily  freeing  himself  from  his  lashings,  White  prepared  to  make  such 
efforts  as  he  could  to  assist  and  save  his  comrade.  But  almost  immediately, 
poor  Stroll,  half  strangled,  doubtless,  and  bewildered  by  his  frightful  plunge 
over  the  cataract,  without  a  cry  or  a  groan,  sank  and  rose  no  more. 

The  fate  of  either  of  his  comrades  would  have  been,  a  merciful  one  to 
White  in  comparison  to  what  befell  him.  Poor  fellow,  his  troubles  had 
hardly  yet  begun  while  theirs  were  ended,  at  least  for  this  world.  The 
death  of  Stroll  fell  upon  him  with  crushing  weight.  Sinking  upon  the 
raft,  which  floated  slowly  around  with  the  eddy  until  it  stranded  upon 
the  head  of  a  small  island,  he  abandoned  himself  for  a  brief  period  to  all 
the  misery  of  despair.  But  his  rugged  and  energetic  nature  would  not 
long  succumb  to  such  a  feeling.  Recovering  himself,  he  began  to  survey 
as  best  he  might  his  situation. 

White  no  longer  doubted  that  he  was  in  the  Grand  Canyon.  He  could 
neither  scale  the  walls  nor  return.  There  was  nothing  left  but  to  proceed 
down  the  stream,  and  in  that  direction  there  seemed  not  the  shadow  of  a 


32  TH£  GRAND   CANYON. 

chance  that  he  might  succeed  and  live.  He  only  dared  to  hope  that  by 
carefully  tying  himself  to  the  raft  his  body  might  float  through  with  some 
portion  of  it  and  be  identified  by  means  of  a  pocket  memorandum  book 
which  he  endeavored  to  secure  to  his  person,  so  that  his  fate  might  become 
known  to  his  relatives  and  friends. 

Having  considered  these  things  with  the  desperate  calmness  of  a  man 
who  regards  himself  as  doomed  to  speedy  and  inevitable  death,  he  never- 
theless omitted  nothing  which  might  tend  to  the  preservation  of  his  life. 
First,  he  overhauled  his  raft  and  tightened  its  lashings.  Next  he  stripped 
the  mesquite  bushes  which  grew  on  the  bank  of  their  scanty  crop,  with 
which  he  partially  appeased  his  hunger.  Then,  with  a  fervent  appeal  to 
the  great  Father  of  all,  he  launched  his  raft  and  floated  away  to  encounter 
unknown  dangers  and  terrors. 

It  is  hardly  necessary  to  say  that  White  kept  no  "  log"  of  his  voyage,  and 
it  would  therefore  be  impossible  to  give  from  this  point  the  details  of  his 
daily  progress.  Never  before  did  mortal  man  perform  such  a  journey.  For 
nearly  500  miles  he  floated  over  a  succession  of  cascades  and  cataracts  varying 
from  4  to  20  feet,  with  patches  of  smooth  water  between.  Frequently  on 
plunging  over  a  fall  the  raft  was  overturned,  and  it  was  with  much  difficulty 
that  he  saved  himself  from  drowning.  Once  he  was  so  long  under  water 
that  he  became  insensible;  but  on  that  occasion  the  raft  providentially 
emerged  right  side  up,  and  when  he  revived  he  found  himself  floating  along 
as  if  nothing  had  happened. 

Below  each  fall  there  was  an  island  formed  by  the  land  thrown  up  by  the 
eddying  waters,  affording  him  an  opportunity  of  hauling  up  his  raft  for 
repairs — a  very  necessary  operation,  as  the  ropes  by  which  it  was  bound 
were  frequently  cut  upon  the  edges  of  the  rocks  at  the  head  of  the  falls — 
and  as  a  place  of  rest  during  the  nights.  At  first  the  mesquite  growing 
upon  the  islands  supplied  him  with  a  scanty  allowance  of  food,  but  after 
the  sixth  day  he  found  the  islands  barren.  A  rawhide  knife  scabbard  then 
afforded  him  some  slight  sustenance  and  a  good  deal  of  chewing  for  a  couple 
of  days,  after  which  he  was  without  food  until  he  passed  the  Rio  Virgen. 
One  day  he  saw  some  lizards,  but  was  too  feeble  to  catch  them.  To  add 
to  his  misery,  he  was  stripped  by  the  rocks  and  water  of  his  hat,  pants, 
drawers,  boots,  and  socks;  his  head,  feet,  and  legs  became  blistered  and 
raw  by  the  sun's  rays. 

Day  by  day  and  hour  by  hour  he  grew  weaker  by  exposure  to  the  heat  and 
because  of  want  of  food.  And  all  the  time  the  dark  walls  of  the  canyon 
towered  above  him  nowhere  less  than  a  thousand  feet,  and  in  some  places  a 
mile  and  a  half  in  height,  to  the  best  of  his  judgment.  Anxiously  he 
watched  for  some  avenue  of  escape,  some  crevice  or  fissure  in  the  adaman- 
tine walls  which  confined  him ,  but  there  was  none .  The  consoling  reflection 
remained  that  it  was  perhaps  better  to  be  dashed  to  pieces  or  perish  of  simple 
starvation  in  the  canyon  than  to  scramble  out  of  it  and  add  the  torment  of 
thirst  to  those  which  he  already  endured .  So  he  voyaged  on ,  now  helplessly 
broiling  in  the  merciless  rays  of  the  sun  as  he  floated  calmly  and  yet  swiftly 
along  the  expanse  of  the  comparatively  smooth  water,  then  tumbling  over 
a  cascade  or  rushing  through  a  rapid  at  the  imminent  peril  of  shipwreck 
upon  the  rocks  which  bumped  and  thumped  his  frail  craft  until  its  light 


THE   GRAND   CANYON.  33 

timbers  rattled;  and  now  shuddering  and  with  bated  breath  plunging  over 
a  fall,  for  aught  he  knew,  into  eternity.  Day  by  day  and  hour  by  hour  he 
grew  weaker  for  the  want  of  food,  while  from  sitting  in  a  cramped  position 
and  from  exposure  to  the  sun,  his  legs  were  so  stiff  and  sore  as  to  fre  almost 
entirely  disabled.  Still,  with  dogged  resolution  he  persevered,  improving 
every  moment  of  daylight,  and  making,  as  he  believed,  at  a  moderate  esti- 
mate of  40  or  50  miles  every  day. 

At  length,  on  the  evening  of  September  6  the  raft,  with  our  bruised, 
battered,  and  starving  voyager,  more  dead  than  alive,  and  yet  retaining  a 
great  deal  of  the  wonderful  vitality  which  thus  far  had  sustained  him,  still 
clinging  to  it,  emerged  from  the  canyon.  Again  the  broadening  river 
flowed  between  low,  green  banks. 

White  felt  that  the  worst  of  the  voyage  was  over.  If  he  could  but  hold 
out  a  day  or  two  longer  he  would  be  saved.  But  though  his  spirit  was  un- 
daunted, his  physical  strength  was  nearly  gone. 

Soon  after  passing  the  mouth  of  a  considerable  stream,  the  Rio  Virgen,  he 
heard  voices  shouting  to  him.  He  could  hardly  convince  himself  that  the 
sounds  were  real,  and  he  gazed  in  wondering  surprise  toward  the  bank.  A 
number  of  Indians  leaped  into  the  water,  swam  out  to  him,  and  pushed 
the  raft  ashore.  He  was  roughly  treated  by  the  Indians,  who  tore  off  his 
coat  tails  and  seized  one  of  his  revolvers.  One  of  the  Indians  who  spoke 
English  told  him  they  were  Pah-Utes.  They  seemed  to  comprehend  the 
fearful  trip  White  had  made  and  to  express  some  astonishment  among  them- 
selves that  he  should  have  survived  it,  but  his  condition  excited  not  the 
smallest  spark  of  sympathy  in  their  dusky  bosoms. 

White  asked  for  food,  and  the  Indians  agreed  to  give  him  a  small  dog  for 
the  remaining  pistol.  But  on  securing  the  weapon,  they  let  the  dog  escape. 
He  was  finally  compelled  to  give  them  his  vest  for  catching  and  killing  the 
animal,  and  even  then  the  Indians  appropriated  the  fore  quarters.  White 
ate  a  hind  quarter  of  the  dog  raw  and  without  salt  for  his  supper,  and  then 
lay  down  and  slept  soundly.  In  the  morning  he  ate  the  other  hind  quarter 
and  resumed  his  voyage  to  Callville. 

It  chanced  that  at  this  time  the  barge  Colorado,  of  Fort  Mojave,  in  charge 
of  Capt.  Wilburn,  with  a  crew  of  four  or  five  men,  was  at  Callville  receiving 
a  cargo  of  lime  and  salt.  Standing  on  the  bank,  the  captain  saw  the  strange 
craft  passing  by  on  the  other  side  and  hailed  it. 

"My  God,  is  this  Callville ?"  responded  White  in  feeble  tones. 

"Yes,"  replied  Capt.  Wilburn;  "come  ashore." 

"I'll  try  to,"  replied  the  voyager,  "but  I  don't  know  whether  I  can  or 
not." 

Fastening  his  raft  about  200  feet  below,  White,  a  strange-looking  object, 
made  his  appearance  on  the  crest  of  a  hill  near  the  landing. 

"My  God,  Capt.  Wilburn,  that  man's  a  hundred  years  old,"  exclaimed 
one  of  the  crew. 

He  looked  older,  for  his  long  hair  and  flowing  beard  were  white.  His 
eyes  were  sunken,  his  aheeks  thin  and  emaciated,  his  shrunken  legs  a  mass 
of  black  and  loathsome  scabs  from  his  loins  to  his  toes.  As  he  crawled 
slowly  and  painfully  toward  them,  the  men,  with  exclamations  of  astonish  - 

102360°— S.  Doc.  42,  65-1 3 


34  THE  GRAND   CANYON. 

ment  and  pity,  went  to  meet  and  assist  him.  They  brought  him  to  their 
camp,  gave  him  food,  washed  and  anointed  his  sores,  and  clothed  him. 
White  became  delirious;  but  toward  evening  his  wandering  senses  returned, 
and  he  was  able  to  give  an  account  of  himself. 

James  Ferry,  United  States  quartermaster  at  Callville,  made  the  Pah-Utes 
return  White's  possessions  and  took  care  of  him  until  he  recovered. 

When  I  last  heard  of  White  he  was  carrying  the  mail  between  Callville 
and  Mojave.  At  the  latter  place  Gen.  W.  J.  Palmer  saw  and  conversed 
with  him,  and  from  his  statements  was  satisfied  that  the  length  of  the 
Grand  Canyon  is  not  less  than  500  miles,  and  that  its  thorough  scientific 
exploration,  while  not  absolutely  impossible,  will  present  difficulties  which 
will  not  soon  be  surmounted. 


CORRECTIONS  BY  WHITE. 

Copies  of  the  Parry,  Calhoun,  and  Herald  reports  of  the  voy- 
age were  sent  to  White  during  the  month  of  November,  1916, 
and  were  returned  soon  afterward  by  his  daughter.  While  in 
his  possession  many  alterations  were  made,  which  have  the 
effect  of  bringing  the  various  accounts  into  closer  accord  with 
White's  own  story.  All  of  the  corrections  can  not  be  indicated 
but  it  is  believed  that  enough  of  them  may  be  given  to  avoid 
injustice,  especially  if  they  are  read  in  connection  with  White's 
narrative,  as  they  should  be. 

In  a  private  letter  accompanying  the  returned  manuscript 
Mr.  White's  daughter  says  that  neither  her  father  not  any  of  the 
members  of  the  family  had  ever  seen  any  of  the  articles  before, 
a  fact  which  will  account  for  their  failure  to  make  earlier  correc- 
tion of  the  errors.  It  should  be  stated  also  that  White's  own 
report  was  written  before  these  accounts  were  sent  to  him. 
The  writer  takes  the  liberty  of  quoting  a  paragraph  from  Miss 
White's  letter  as  calculated  to  throw  light  on  the  general  sub- 
ject, as  follows: 

Owing  to  father's  age  he  does  not  remember  distances  nor  names  very  well. 
He  is  failing  rapidly  and  his  memory  is  not  the  best,  but  it  seems  to  us  that 
he  remembers  the  important  events  of  his  journey.  In  fact  he  never  paid 
much  attention  to  distances  and  names  at  the  time  of  his  perilous  voyage. 
And  it  must  be  remembered  that  when  he  was  going  £hrough  the  canyon, 
all  he  was  thinking  of  was  how  to  get  out,  and  not  of  the  distances  between 
streams  and  the  names  thereof.  But  while  he  does  not  remember  the  dis- 
tances, he  does  remember  the  whirlpool  at  the  mouth  of  the  Little  Colorado 
River.  He  is  positive  about  that.  He  always  told  us  about  the  whirlpool 
at  the  mouth  of  the  Little  Colorado. 

In  these  changes,  as  well  as  in  White's  own  narrative,  the 
starting  point  of  the  water  journey  is  definitely  fixed  at  or 
below  the  junction  of  the  Green  and  the  Grand,  the  head  of  the 
Colorado  proper,  and  not,  as  stated  by  Parry  and  Calhoun,  on 
the  Grand,  30  miles  above  the  junction.  This  is  the  only  mate- 
rial correction  in  the  Parry  article 

The  Calhoun  story  is  liberally  slashed,  the  principal  changes 
being  as  follows : 

35 


'36  THE  GRAND   CANYON. 

The  reference  to  desertions  at  Colorado  City  is  stricken  out, 
and  this  is  in  accordance  with  the  fact  brought  out  elsewhere, 
that  the  original  party  of  four  held  together  until  the  head- 
waters of  the  Arkansas  River  were  reached.  The  live  stock 
as  given  by  White  consists  of  four  riding  horses,  four  pack 
horses,  and  one  pack  mule,  which  also  corresponds  with  other 
information  to  the  effect  that  the  party  carried  an  unusual 
number  of  animals.  Referring  to  Calhoun's  account  of  the 
Indian  attack  in  which  Baker  lost  his  life,  White  eliminates 
much  of  the  detail,  including  the  statement  that  the  Indians 
used  bows  and  arrows  as  well  as  guns.  He  says  Baker  uttered 
only  one  sentence  after  he  was  shot,  saying,  "I  am  killed." 

Coming  to  the  voyage  down  the  river,  White  says  that  the 
first  raft  made  by  him  and  Stroll  was  composed  of  five  instead 
of  three  cottonwood  logs,  as  stated  by  both  Calhoun  and  Parry. 
He  strikes  out  the  statement  that  there  was  difficulty  in  keeping 
the  raft  from  striking  the  rocks  during  the  first  day  out;  says 
that  it  was  the  mouth  of  the  San  Juan  and  not  the  mouth  of 
the  Green  that  was  reached  after  the  first  float;  eliminates  the 
clauses  in  the  whirlpool  narrative  which  represent  him  as  drop- 
ping his  paddle,  falling  on  his  knees,  clasping  his  hands,  and 
losing  consciousness. 

The  portions  of  the  Herald  article  censored  out  of  existence 
are  the  following: 

Much  of  the  detail  regarding  the  plunge  which  resulted  in  the 
drowning  of  Stroll. 

The  statement  that  one  of  his  submergences  resulted  in  un- 
consciousness. 

The  version  of  his  rescue  at  Callville,  including  the  dramatic 
conversation. 

White  says  he  was  pulled  out  of  the  river  at  Callville.  He  also 
says  that  instead  of  having  the  second  of  the  hind  quarters  of  the 
Indian  dog  for  his  breakfast  the  morning  following  his  landing  at 
the  Indian  village  he  dropped  the  precious  morsel  in  the  river 
and  lost  it. 

The  reader  will  not  fail  to  observe  that  even  after  White's  cor- 
rections there  are  discrepancies  in  the  accounts,  but  to  the  writer 
they  do  not  present  insuperable  objections  to  the  acceptance  of 
the  story  in  its  essentials.  The  impartial  investigator  will  surely 
make  due  allowance  for  the  variety  of  concept  on  the  part  of  the 
various  reporters  of  the  event.  The  fact  that  White  himself 


THE  GRAND   CANYON.  37 

wrote  none  of  these  accounts,  but  instead  related  the  circum- 
stances to  others,  each  of  whom  might  naturally  get  a  different 
view  from  that  conceived  by  his  fellows,  must  be  taken  into 
account  in  reaching  a  conclusion.  All  know  how  difficult  it  is 
to  obtain  the  same  version  of  any  given  occurrence  from  two  or 
more  actual  witnesses.  How  much  greater  the  obstacles  in  the 
way  of  getting  identical  accounts  of  a  proceeding  which  has  not 
been  witnessed  by  the  narrators — of  which  they  only  had  heard 
at  second  hand.  White  is  a  man  of  few  words,  and  it  is  not 
probable  that  in  recounting  his  experiences  to  interviewers  he 
elaborated  to  any  great  extent  upon  the  character  of  the  country 
he  passed  through,  nor  even  upon  his  own  thrilling  trials.  Many 
details  might  easily  be  left  untouched. 

One  of  the  principal  points  of  attack  is  the  account  of  White's 
escape  from  a  whirlpool  said  to  have  been  located  at  the  mouth 
of  the  Little  Colorado  River.  White  adheres  to  his  version,  and 
Maj.  Calhoun  and  Dr.  Parry  both  refer  to  it,  the  major,  with  true 
journalistic  instinct,  enlarging  upon  it  as  a  dramatic  episode. 
Having  heard  it  mentioned,  what  real  reporter  could  have  failed 
to' 'play  it  up"? 

A  genuine  puzzle  is  found  in  the  differing  statements  regard- 
ing interviews  with  White.  Dr.  Bell  tells  us  that  of  the  party 
only  Dr.  Parry  saw  the  man,  and  he  states  explicitly  that  Maj. 
Calhoun  did  not  see  him.  Dr.  Parry  claims  no  such  exclusive- 
ness  for  his  interview,  but  he  fails  to  mention  the  presence  of 
others  when  it  took  place.  He  does  say,  however,  that  Mr. 
White  was  brought  to  Mojave  "that  we  might  see  and  talk  to 
him";  "we"— not  "I."  Maj.  Calhoun  says  that  he  and  Dr. 
Bell  were  with  Parry  at  the  time.  The  Rocky  Mountain  Herald 
writer  gives  the  name  of  Gen.  Palmer  as  that  of  the  only  person 
who  heard  White's  story  from  his  own  lips.  White  himself 
mentions  only  Gen.  Palmer.  It  is  known  that  Dr.  Bell  was  not 
at  the  meeting  place,  and  it  would  seem  probable  that  Gen. 
Palmer,  Dr.  Parry,  and  Maj.  Calhoun,  all  of  whom  were  together 
at  Fort  Mojave,  should  have  met  White,  either  collectively  or 
singly.  In  writing  of  the  occurrence  subsequently  it  would  have 
been  possible  for  Calhoun  to  make  the  mistake  of  using  Bell's 
name  instead  of  Palmer's,  and  if  Calhoun  saw  the  man  in  Dr. 
Bell's  absence,  as  he  did  if  he  saw  him  at  all,  the  doctor  might 
have  been  led  into  the  error  of  asserting  Calhoun's  absence. 
Such  things  have  happened. 


38  THE   GRAND   CANYON. 

Comparatively  little  attention  need  be  given  to  the  circum- 
stance that  some  of  the  accounts  locate  the  meeting  at  Fort 
Mojave,  while  others  place  it  at  Hardyville.  The  two  places 
were  near  each  other  on  the  Colorado,  and  it  may  well  be  that 
there  were  meetings  at  both.  This  possibility  may  explain  the 
variations  in  relation  to  the  interviews.  It  is  known  that  the 
Palmer  party — Palmer,  Parry,  and  Calhoun — spent  most  of 
Christmas  week  of  1867  in  this  vicinity,  and  that  they  visited 
both  points. 


JAMES  WHITE. 
In  his  80th  year. 


WHITE'S  OWN  STORY. 

After  remaining  for  a  few  months  on  the  lower  Colorado 
and  after  revisiting  his  old  home  in  Wisconsin,  Mr.  White 
returned  to  Colorado  and  ultimately  located  in  that  State. 
There  he  has  lived  ever  since  1878,  and  there  in  1916  he  pre- 
pared this  account  of  his  voyage.  He  has  become  an  old 
man,  and  necessarily  the  passage  of  time  has  had  the  effect 
of  clouding  his  memory  as  to  details;  but  the  account  is 
still  valuable,  because,  so  far  as  known,  it  is  the  only  printed 
statement  signed  by  him,  with  the  exception  of  a  brief 
account  which  appeared  in  a  Wisconsin  paper  soon  after  the 
conclusion  of  the  voyage. 

Mr.  White  writes: 

I  was  born  in  Rome,  N.  Y.,  November  19, 1837,  but  was  reared  in  Keno- 
sha,  Wis.  At  the  age  of  23  I  left  for  Denver,  Colo.,  later  drifting  to  Cali- 
fornia, and  there  enlisted  in  the  Army  at  Camp  Union,  Sacramento,  in 
Company  H,  California  Infantry,  Gen.  Carleton  (some  doubt  as  to  the  cor- 
rect spelling  of  his  name)  being  general  of  the  regiment,  and  the  company 
being  under  Capt.  Stratton.  I  served  in  the  Army  three  and  one-half 
years,  being  honorably  discharged  at  Franklin,  Tex.,  on  May  31,  1865. 
From  there  I  went  to  Santa  Fe,  N.  Mex.,  and  then  to  Denver.  In  the  fall 
of  that  year  I  went  from  Denver  to  Atchison,  Kans.,  with  Capt.  Turnley 
(some  doubt  as  to  the  correct  spelling  of  this  name)  and  his  family,  and 
from  Atchison  I  went  to  Fort  Dodge,  Kans.,  where  I  drove  stage  for  Barlow 
&  Sanderson,  and  there  I  got  acquainted  with  Capt.  Baker,  also  George 
Stroll  and  Goodfellow.  This  was  in  the  spring  of  1867,  and  the  circum- 
stances under  which  I  met  them  were  as  follows:  Capt.  Baker  was  a  trapper 
at  the  time  I  met  him  there,  and  the  Indians  had  stolen  his  horses,  and  he 
asked  me  to  go  with  him  to  get  his  horses,  and  I  went  with  him,  George 
Stroll,  and  Goodfellow.  We  could  not  get  his  horses,  so  we  took  14  head 
of  horses  from  the  Indians.  The  Indians  followed  us  all  night  and  all  day, 
and  we  crossed  the  river  at  a  place  called  Cimarron  in  Kansas,  and  we 
traveled  across  the  prairies  to  Colorado  City,  Colo. 

Before  going  further  with  my  story  I  would  like  to  relate  here  what  I 
know  of  Capt.  Baker's  history.  He  had  been  in  the  San  Juan  country  in 
1860  and  was  driven  out  by  the  Indians.  He  showed  me  lumber  that  he 
had  sawed  by  hand  to  make  sluice  boxes.  I  was  only  with  him  about  three 
months,  and  he  spoke  very  little  of  his  personal  affairs.  When  we  were 
together  in  Colorado  City  he  met  several  of  his  former  friends  that  he  had 
been  prospecting  with  in  the  early  sixties.  I  can  not  remember  their  names. 

39 


40  THE   GRAND   CANYON. 

The  only  thing  I  know  is  that  he  mentioned  coming  from  St.  Louis,  but 
never  spoke  of  himself  as  being  a  soldier,  and  I  thought  "  Captain ' '  was  just 
a  nickname  for  him.  He  was  a  man  that  spoke  little  of  his  past  or  personal 
affairs,  but  I  remember  of  him  keeping  a  memorandum  book  of  his  travels 
from  the  time  we  left  Colorado  City. 

After  reaching  Colorado  City,  Colo.,  Baker  proposed  a  prospecting  trip  to 
the  San  Juan.  There  we  got  our  outfit,  and  that  spring  the  four  of  us 
started  on  the  trip  and  went  over  to  the  Rio  Grande.  At  the  Rio  Grande, 
Goodfellow  was  shot  in  the  foot,  and  we  left  him  at  a  farmhouse,  and  the 
three  of  us  proceeded  on  our  trip.  From  the  Rio  Grande  we  went  over  to 
the  head  of  it,  down  on  the  Animas,  up  the  Eureka  Gulch.  There  we  pros- 
pected one  month.  We  dug  a  ditch  150  feet  long  and  15  feet  deep.  We 
did  not  find  anything,  so  we  wrent  down  the  Animas  about  5  miles,  crossed 
over  into  the  Mancos.  At  the  head  of  the  Mancos  we  saw  a  large  lookout 
house  about  100  feet  high,  which  was  built  out  of  cobblesotnes.  Farther 
down  the  canyon  we  saw  houses  built  of  cobblestones,  and  also  noticed  small 
houses  about  2  feet  square  that  were  built  up  about  50  feet  on  the  side  of  the 
canyon  and  seemed  to  be  houses  of  some  kind  of  a  bird  that  was  worshiped. 
We  followed  the  Mancos  down  until  we  struck  the  San  Juan.  Then  we 
followed  the  San  Juan  down  as  far  as  we  could  and  then  swam  our  horses 
across  and  started  over  to  the  Grand  River,  but  before  we  got  to  the  Grand 
River  we  struck  a  canyon ;  so  we  went  down  that  canyon  and  camped  there 
three  days.  We  could  not  get  out  of  the  canyon  on  the  opposite  side ;  so  we 
had  to  go  out  of  the  canyon  the  same  way  we  went  down..  There  we  were 
attacked  by  Indians  and  Baker  was  killed.  We  did  not  know  there  were 
any  Indians  about  until  Baker  was  shot.  Baker,  falling  to  the  ground,  said, 
"  I  am  killed. ' '  The  Indians  were  hiding  behind  the  rocks  overlooking  the 
canyon.  Baker  expired  shortly  after  the  fatal  shot,  and,  much  to  our  grief, 
we  had  to  leave  his  remains,  as  the  Indians  were  close  upon  us;  and  George 
Stroll  and  I  had  to  make  our  escape  as  soon  as  possible,  going  back  down  in 
the  canyon.  We  left  our  horses  in  the  brush  and  we  took  our  overcoats, 
lariats,  guns,  ammunition,  and  i  quart  of  flour,  and  I  also  had  a  knife  scab- 
bard made  out  of  rawhide,  and  I  also  had  a  knife,  and  we  started  afoot  down 
the  canyon. 

We  traveled  all  day  until  about  5  o'clock,  when  we  struck  the  head  of 
the  Grand  Canyon  of  the  Colorado  River.  There  we  picked  up  some 
logs  and  built  us  a  raft.  We  had  200  feet  of  rope  when  we  first  built  the 
raft,  which  was  about  6  feet  wide  and  8  feet  long,  just  big  enough  to  hold 
us  up.  The  logs  were  securely  tied  together  with  the  ropes.  We  got  on 
our  raft  at  night,  working  it  with  a  pole.  We  traveled  all  night,  and  the 
next  day,  at  10  o'clock,  we  passed  the  mouth  of  the  San  Juan  River.  We 
had  smooth  floating  for  three  days.  The  third  day,  about  5  o'clock,  we 
went  over  ajapid,  and  George  was  washed  off,  but  I  caught  hold  of  him  and 
got  him  on  the  raft  again. 

From  the  time  we  started  the  walls  of  the  Canyon  were  from  two  to 
three  thousand  feet  high,  as  far  as  I  could  estimate  at  the  time,  and  some 
days  we  could  not  see  the  sun  for  an  hour,  possibly  two  hours.  Each  day 
we  would  mix  a  little  of  the  flour  in  a  cup  and  drink  it.  The  third  day 
the  flour  got  wet,  so  we  scraped  it  off  of  the  sack  and  ate  it.  That  was  the 
last  of  the  flour  and  all  we  had  to  eat. 


THE  GRAND   CANYON.  4! 

On  the  fourth  day  we  rebuilt  our  raft,  finding  cedar  logs  along  the  bank 
from  12  to  14  feet  long  and  about  8  or  10  inches  through.  We  made  it 
larger  than  the  first  one.  The  second  raft  was  about  8  feet  wide  and  12 
feet  long.  We  started  down  the  river  again,  and  about  8  o'clock  in  the 
morning  (as  to  our  time,  we  were  going  by  the  sun)  we  got  into  a  whirlpool 
and  George  was  washed  off.  I  hollered  to  him  to  swim  ashore,  but  he 
went  down  and  I  never  saw  him  again. 

After  George  was  drowned  I  removed  my  trousers,  tying  them  to  the 
raft,  so  I  would  be  able  to  swim  in  case  I  was  washed  off.  I  then  tied  a 
long  rope  to  my  waist,  which  was  fastened  to  the  raft,  and  I  kept  the  rope 
around  my  waist  until  the  twelfth  day. 

About  noon  I  passed  the  mouth  of  the  Little  Colorado  River,  where  the 
water  came  into  the  canyon  as  red  as  could  be,  and  just  below  that  I  struck 
a  large  whirlpool,  and  I  was  in  the  whirlpool  about  two  hours  or  more 
before  I  got  out. 

I  floated  on  all  that  day,  going  over  several  rapids,  and  when  night  came 
I  tied  my  raft  to  the  rocks  and  climbed  upon  the  rocks  of  the  walls  of  the 
canyon  to  rest.  I  had  nothing  to  eat  on  the  fourth  day. 

On  the  fifth  day  I  started  down  the  river  again,  going  over  four  or  five 
rapids,  and  when  night  came  I  rested  on  the  walls  again  and  still  nothing 
to  eat. 

On  the  sixth  day  I  started  down  the  river  again,  and  I  came  to  a  little 
island  in  the  middle  of  the  river.  There  was  a  bush  of  mesquite  beans  on 
this  island,  and  I  got  a  handful  of  these  beans  and  ate  them.  When  night 
came  I  rested  on  the  walls  again. 

The  seventh,  eighth,  ninth,  and  tenth  days  were  uneventful,  but  still 
going  continuously  over  rapids,  and  still  nothing  to  eat.  So  I  cut  my 
knife  scabbard  into  small  pieces  and  swallowed  them.  During  the  entire 
trip  I  saw  no  fish  or  game  of  any  kind. 

On  the  eleventh  day  I  went  over  the  big  rapid.  I  saw  it  before  I  came 
to  it,  and  laid  down  on  my  stomach  and  hung  to  the  raft  and  let  the  raft  go 
over  the  rapid,  and  after  getting  about  200  yards  below  the  rapid  I  stopped 
and  looked  at  a  stream  of  water  about  as  large  as  my  body  that  was  running 
through  the  solid  rocks  of  the  canyon  about  75  feet  above  my  head,  and  the 
clinging  moss  to  the  rocks  made  a  beautiful  sight.  The  beauty  of  it  can 
not  be  described. 

On  the  twelfth  day  my  raft  got  on  some  rocks  and  I  could  not  get  it  off; 
so  I  waded  onto  a  small  island  in  the  middle  of  the  river.  On  this  island 
there  was  an  immense  tree  that  had  been  lodged  there.  The  sun  was  so 
hot  I  could  not  work,  so  I  dug  the  earth  out  from  under  this  tree  and  laid 
under  it  until  the  sun  disappeared  behind  the  cliffs.  This  was  about  noon. 
After  resting  there  I  got  up  and  found  five  sticks  about  as  big  as  my  leg  and 
took  them  down  to  the  edge  of  the  island  below  my  raft.  I  then  untied 
the  rope  from  my  raft  and  took  the  loose  rope  I  had  around  my  waist  and 
tied  these  sticks  together.  I  slept  on  this  island  all  night. 

On  the  thirteenth  day  I  started  out  again  on  my  newly  made  raft  (leaving 
the  old  raft  on  the  rocks),  thinking  it  was  daylight;  but  it  was  moonlight, 
and  I  continued  down  the  river  until  daylight.  While  floating  in  the 


42  THE  GRAND   CANYON. 

moonlight  I  saw  a  pole  sticking  up  between  two  large  rocks,  which  I  after- 
wards learned  the  Government  had  placed  there  some  years  before  as  the 
end  of  its  journey. 

When  daylight  came  I  heard  some  one  talking,  and  I  hollered  "hello," 
and  they  hollered  "hello ' '  back.  I  discovered  then  that  they  were  Indians. 
Some  of  them  came  out  to  the  raft  and  pulled  me  ashore.  There  were  a 
lot  on  the  bank,  and  I  asked  them  if  they  were  friendly,  and  they  said  they 
were,  and  I  then  asked  them  to  give  me  something  to  eat,  when  they  gave 
me  a  piece  of  mesquite  bread.  While  I  was  talking  to  some  of  the  Indians 
the  others  stole  my  half-ax  and  one  of  my  revolvers,  which  were  roped  to 
the  raft.  They  also  tore  my  coat  trying  to  take  it  from  me. 

After  eating  the  bread  I  got  on  my  raft  and  floated  until  about  3  o'clock 
in  the  afternoon,  when  I  came  upon  another  band  of  Indians,  and  I  went 
ashore  and  went  into  their  camp.  They  did  not  have  anything  for  me  to 
eat,  so  I  traded  my  other  revolver  and  vest  for  a  dog.  They  skinned  the 
dog  and  gave  me  the  two  hind  quarters  and  I  ate  one  for  supper,  roasting  it 
on  the  coals.  The  Indians  being  afraid  of  me,  drove  me  out  of  their  camp, 
and  I  rested  on  the  bank  of  the  river  that  night,  and  the  next  morning,  the 
fourteenth  day  after  I  got  on  my  raft,  I  started  to  eat  the  other  quarter,  but 
I  dropped  it  in  the  water.  I  floated  that  day  until  3  o'clock  and  landed  at 
Callville,  and  a  man  came  out  and  pulled  me  ashore. 

Jim  Ferry  or  Perry  (not  sure  as  to  the  first  letter  of  this  name)  was  a  mail 
agent  at  that  place.  He  was  also  a  correspondent  for  some  newspaper  in 
San  Francisco.  He  took  me  in  and  fed  me.  When  I  landed  all  the  cloth- 
ing I  had  on  my  body  was  a  coat  and  a  shirt,  and  my  flesh  was  all  lacerated 
on  my  legs  from  my  terrible  experience  and  of  getting  on  and  off  the  raft 
and  climbing  on  the  rocks.  My  beard  and  hair  were  long  and  faded  from 
the  sun.  I  was  so  pale  that  even  the  Indians  were  afraid  of  me.  I  was 
nothing  but  skin  and  bones  and  so  weak  that  I  could  hardly  walk.  Jim 
Ferry  or  Perry  cared  for  me  for  three  days,  and  the  soldiers  around  there 
gave  me  clothing  enough  to  cover  my  body. 

I  was  at  Callville  about  four  weeks,  and  a  boat  was  there  getting  a  load  of 
salt,  and  I  got  on  that  boat  and  went  to  Fort  Mojave.  There  I  met  Gen. 
Palmer  and  told  him  my  story. 

From  Fort  Mojave  I  went  to  Callville  again  and  there  worked  for  Jim 
Ferry  (or  Perry),  carrying  the  mail  for  three  months  between  Callville  and 
Fort  Mojave.  Then  he  sold  out  to  Jim  Hinton,  and  I  carried  mail  for  him 
for  a  month.  He  sold  out,  and  we  each  bought  a  horse  and  pack  animal  and 
we  started  from  Callville,  going  to  Salt  Lake  in  the  spring  of  1868.  From 
Salt  Lake  City  we  went  to  Bear  River.  There  we  took  a  contract  of  getting 
out  ties.  Then  I  hired  out  as  wagon  boss.  Then  I  quit  and  run  a  saloon. 
I  sold  out  and  then  went  to  Omaha,  Nebr.  From  there  I  went  to  Chicago, 
and  from  there  to  Kenosha,  Wis.,  to  visit  my  old  home.  That  was  in  1869. 
From  Kenosha  I  went  to  Chicago,  and  from  there  to  Leavenworth,  Kans., 
and  later  to  Kansas  City,  Kans.  From  there  I  went  to  Junction  City,  Kans. , 
and  then  to  Goose  Creek.  I  drove  stage  in  and  out  of  Goose  Creek  for  Bar- 
low and  Sanderson,  for  whom  I  had  worked  in  Fort  Dodge.  I  was  trans- 
ferred from  Goose  Creek  to  Fort  Lyon  or  Five  Mile  Point.  From  there  I 


THE  GRAND   CANYON.  43 

went  to  Bent  Canyon,  Colo.,  and  kept  home  station.  From  there  I  went 
to  Las  Animas,  Colo.,  and  minor  places,  later  drifting  to  Trinidad,  where 
I  have  lived  since  1878. 

These  are  the  plain  facts.  There  are  many  minor  points  that  could  be 
mentioned,  but  did  not  think  it  would  be  necessary  to  mention  here.  I 
have  never  been  through  that  country  since  my  experience,  but  have  had 
a  great  desire  to  go  over  the  same  country  again,  but  have  never  been 
financially  able  to  take  the  trip. 

(Signed)          JAMES  WHITE. 


CORROBORATIVE  TESTIMONY. 

In  addition  to  the  statement  by  White  and  the  accounts  by 
men  who,  avowedly  or  probably,  had  talked  with  him  concern- 
ing the  voyage  soon  after  its  conclusion,  there  were  many 
publications  concerning  the  trip;  but  most,  if  not  all,  of  these 
were  based  upon  second-hand  information,  and  it  has  not  been 
thought  worth  while  to  include  them  or  to  refer  to  them  except 
as  corroborative  proof.  Many  writers  of  the  time  found  the 
White  narrative  worthy  of  attention,  even  though  the  story 
was  not  received  directly  from  him.  Not  only  did  the  news- 
papers print  accounts  of  the  voyage,  but  it  was  exploited  in 
writings  of  more  permanent  value,  showing  that  at  that  time 
the  narrative  was  regarded  as  authentic.  Among  those  who 
took  cognizance  of  it  was  Bancroft,  the  historian  of  the  western 
coast,  who  included  the  White  story  in  his  history  of  Arizona. 
Samuel  Bowles,  the  famous  editor  of  the  Springfield  Republican, 
and  Albert  D.  Richardson,  both  of  them  early  and  frequent 
visitors  to  the  West,  accept  the  record  without  question,  and 
both  make  mention  of  White's  adventure  in  books  written  by 
themselves.  It  would  be  worth  while  to  quote  from  all  these 
notable  publicists,  but  an  extract  from  Mr.  Richardson  must 
suffice  as  a  sample  of  the  thought  and  expression  of  all.  He 
went  to  the  extent  of  giving  the  full  story  of  the  Grand  Canyon 
exploit  in  the  1869  edition  of  his  great  book,  "Beyond  the 
Mississippi,"  regarded  everywhere  in  its  day  as  the  last  word 
on  all  things  western.  The  following  excerpt  affords  a  fair 
idea  of  his  estimate  of  White's  story : 

Indians  and  trappers  have  always  believed  that  no  man  could  tread  the 
stupendous  gorge,  hundreds  of  miles  long,  with  its  unknown  cataracts  and 
its  frowning  rock  walls  a  mile  high,  and  come  out  alive.  But  one  has  done 
it  and  lives  to  tell  the  tale.  *  *  *  What  a  romance  his  adventures 
would  make.  Let  Charles  Reade  or  Victor  Hugo  take  James  White  for  a 
hero  and  give  us  a  new  novel  to  hold  children  from  play  and  old  men  from 
the  chimney  corner. 

In  another  connection  in  the  same  article  Mr.  Richardson 
characterizes  White's  feat  "as  perhaps  without  parallel  in 
authentic  human  history." 

44 


GRAND   CANYON.  45 

There  also  is  much  to  be  found  in  the  narratives  already 
quoted  as  direct  testimony  which  will  bear  closer  scrutiny  be- 
cause of  its  value  as  supporting  proof.  In  this  category  first 
consideration  should  be  given  to  the  sentence  in  Dr.  Parry's 
report,  in  which  he  stated  that  there  was  "corroborative  testi- 
mony" in  support  of  White's  story;  nor  will  the  searcher  for 
facts  fail  to  regret  that  the  doctor  did  not  incorporate  this 
testimony  in  this  paper.  Doubtless  he  would  have  done  so  if 
he  had  had  the  faintest  suspicion  that  the  next  generation  would 
make  such  effort  to  discredit  his  narrative  as  has  been  made. 

It  would  seem  probable  that  Dr.  Parry  had  hi  mind  the 
indorsements  of  Messrs.  Hardy,  McAllister,  and  Ballard,  as 
given  by  Maj.  Calhoun  in  Dr.  Bell's  "New  Tracks"  and  quoted 
elsewhere  in  this  paper.  There  one  finds  three  contemporaneous 
affirmative  witnesses,  all  intimately  acquainted  with  the 
Colorado  River  as  known  at  that  time,  all  of  whom  agree  that 
White's  experience  must  necessarily  have  been  as  he  described 
it  to  be  They  speak  as  one  man  in  saying  that  White  could 
not  have  done  otherwise  than  go  through  the  Canyon.  Where 
could  be  found  more  positive  affirmative  evidence  as  to  the 
possibilities?  Certainly  not  in  the  40-year-after  opinions  of 
anyone. 

It  is  very  fortunate  for  Mr.  White,  and,  if  his  claim  is  correct, 
fortunate  for  history  also,  that  the  Palmer  surveying  party 
reached  the  Colorado  River  in  time  to  meet  White  soon  after 
he  concluded  his  momentous  voyage  and  while  his  story  was 
fresh;  and,  enlightening  as  are  the  Parry  and  Calhoun  state- 
ments, they  are  scarcely  more  important  than  is  the  acceptance 
of  the  White  account  by  Gen.  Palmer  and  Dr.  Bell.  After 
completing  their  excellent  work  in  behalf  of  the  Union  Pacific, 
these  two  last-mentioned  gentlemen  entered  upon  a  railroad 
enterprise  of  their  own  and  became  known  the  world  over  in 
connection  with  the  Denver  &  Rio  Grande,  of  which  they  were 
the  guiding  spirits  for  a  generation.  To  a  very  large  circle 
their  judgment  was  supreme  and  their  word  as  the  law  on  any 
subject.  In  matters  of  fact  they  were  implicitly  relied  on  far 
and  near.  They  give  substantial  support  to  White. 

The  Herald  writer  says  that  Gen.  Palmer  talked  with  White 
and  that  "he  was  satisfied  that  the  length  of  the  Grand  Canyon 
is  not  less  than  500  miles  and  that  its  scientific  exploration, 
while  not  absolutely  impossible,  will  present  difficulties  which 


46  THE  GRAND  CANYON. 

will  not  soon  be  surmounted."  We  already  have  seen  that 
Palmer  thought  well  enough  of  the  achievement  to  incorporate 
an  account  of  it  in  his  official  report  of  the  operations  of  his 
party,  and  here  we  have  him  drawing  conclusions,  the  accuracy 
of  which  has  been  abundantly  demonstrated  since.  Is  not  the 
fact  that  White  supplied  information  on  which  to  base  such 
calculations  an  item  in  his  favor  ? 

Introducing  Maj.  Calhoun's  account  of  the  White  exploit  in 
his  book — long  since,  unfortunately,  out  of  print — Dr.  Bell 
uses  the  following  language : 

Whilst  Gen.  Palmer,  Dr.  Parry,  and  Maj.  Calhoun  were  examining  the 
natural  productions  of  the  country  and  the  surveyors  were  trying  to  find 
a  level  route  across  the  regions  which  lie  about  100  miles  south  of  the  Great 
Canyon  of  the  Colorado  an  unfortunate  prospector  was  actually  floating 
through  that  stupendous  chasm  on  a  simple  raft  of  cottonwood.  Dr.  Parry 
had  the  good  fortune  to  meet  this  man  after  his  perilous  trip,  at  Hardyville, 
on  the  Rio  Colorado,  and  to  hear  from  his  own  lips  the  story  of  his  adventure. 
The  doctor  carefully  noted  all  the  particulars  of  the  story  and  closely  cross- 
questioned  the  hero  of  it,  who,  although  a  simple  and  illiterate  man,  was 
brave,  straightforward,  and  one  to  be  thoroughly  believed. 

It  will  be  found  profitable  to  return  briefly  to  the  consideration 
of  the  statements  of  Dr.  Parry  and  Maj.  Calhoun.  They  were 
leading  members  of  the  survey,  which  was  semi-governmental 
in  character.  Both  of  them  take  pains  to  give  assurance  of  the 
genuineness  of  their  narratives  and  of  the  trustworthiness  of 
White.  Such  testimony  should  count  for  much.  Maj.  Calhoun 
had  earned  his  title  in  the  Civil  War,  and  he  was  highly  regarded 
as  a  journalist  before  he  turned  engineer.  Dr.  Parry's  standing 
as  a  man  and  as  a  scientist  was  such  that  afterward  he  was 
appointed  chief  botanist  to  the  American-Mexican  Boundary 
Commission,  in  which  capacity  he  gained  fresh  laurels.  Samuel 
Bowles  says  ''he  was  the  most  scientific  explorer  of  the  higher 
mountains."  No  one  could  question  the  impartiality  of  such 
men,  and  the  positions  they  held  ought  to  be  sufficient  guaranty 
that  in  their  day  their  intelligence  and  judgment  were  generally 
accepted  as  equal  to  the  standards  of  the  times.  They  were 
not  men  who  could  be  easily  deceived  by  a  "prevaricator," 
however  "masterful."  Let  us  therefore  invite  attention  to  a 
brief  extract  from  each  of  their  papers. 

Says  Maj.  Calhoun: 

While  on  the  survey  and  while  stopping  for  a  few  days  at  Fort  Mojave, 
Dr.  W.  A.  Bell,  Dr.  C.  C.  Parry,  and  myself  met  this  man,  whose  name  is 


THE  GRAND  CANYON.  47 

James  White,  and  from  his  lips,  the  only  living  man  who  had  actually 
traversed  its  formidable  depths,  we  learned  the  story  of  the  canyon. 
*  *  *  He  is  a  man  of  average  intelligence,  simple,  and  unassuming  in 
his  manner  and  address,  and  without  any  of  the  swagger  and  braggadocio 
peculiar  to  frontier  men. 

The  excerpt  selected  from  Parry  follows : 

Now  at  last  we  have  a  perfectly  authentic  account  from  an  individual 
who  actually  traversed  the  formidable  canyon's  depths,  and  who,  fortu- 
nately for  science,  still  lives  to  detail  his  trustworthy  observations  of  this 
most  remarkable  voyage.  *  *  *  His  narrative  throughout  bears  all  the 
evidence  of  reliability  and  is  sustained  by  collateral  evidence,  so  that  there 
is  not  the  least  reason  to  doubt  that  he  actually  accomplished  the  journey 
in  the  manner  and  at  the  time  mentioned. 

Surely  little  in  the  way  of  emphasis  could  be  added. 

Let  us  remember  also  that  this  report  by  Parry  was  not  only 
accepted  by  Gen.  Palmer,  himself  a  man  of  scientific  attainments, 
but  that  it  was  incorporated  in  his  accounting  to  his  railroad 
company  and  through  President  Perry  found  its  way  into  the 
Transactions  of  the  St.  Louis  Academy  of  Science,  by  which 
organization  it  was  published  as  an  important  addition  to  the 
world's  knowledge. 

There  is  one  other  authority  to  be  quoted  in  this  connection, 
and  that  is  none  other  than  Mr.  Frederick  S.  Dellenbaugh,  who 
has  not  allowed  his  friendship  for  Maj.  Powell  to  entirely  obscure 
his  sense  of  fair  play.  In  his  praiseworthy  effort  to  make  com- 
plete his  history  of  canyon  exploration  he  has  given  us  a  brief 
statement  of  his  experience  in  obtaining  information  from  Mr. 
Hardy,  who  with  others  is  credited  with  rescuing  White  from 
the  waters  of  the  lower  Colorado.  After  detailing  his  reasons 
for  doubting  White's  story,  Mr.  Dellenbaugh  says : 

Hardy,  whom  I  met  in  Arizona  a  good  many  years  ago,  told  me  he  believed 
the  man  White  told  the  truth,  but  his  belief  was  apparently  based  on  the 
condition  White  was  in  when  he  was  rescued.  That  he  was  nearly  dead  is 
true,  but  that  is  about  all  of  his  yarn  that  is. 

To  be  sure  this  is  a  very  grudging  admission,  but  it  is  a  good 
deal  for  one  so  partial  to  Maj.  Powell,  and  it  brings  out  the  im- 
portant fact  that  Hardy  accepted  the  White  adventure  as  an 
actuality.  Hardy  was  the  leading  man  of  the  Colorado  River 
country.  He  was  at  the  head  of  important  enterprises  and  had 
taken  such  rank  that  the  town  of  Hardyville  was  named  for  him. 
He  was  among  the  very  first  to  see  White  after  he  landed. 
He  accepted  White's  story,  and  this  testimony  is  important  even 


48  THE  GRAND   CANYON. 

though  coupled  with  Mr.  Dellenbaugh 's  own  interpretation. 
That  Mr.  Hardy's  opinion  that  White  had  made  the  voyage 
through  the  canyon  was  based  on  the  latter's  condition  when 
picked  up,  and  "nothing  else,"  as  Mr.  Dellenbaugh  surmises,  is 
scarcely  borne  out  by  the  Calhoun-Parry  statement  reading: 

From  his  knowledge  of  the  country  above  Calhille  Mr.  Hardy  says  that  it 
'would  be  impossible  for  White  to  have  come  from  any  distance  by  the  river 
without  traveling  through  the  length  of  the  Great  Canyon  of  the  Colorado. 

Here  we  find  complete  substantiation  of  Dellenbaugh's  ad- 
mission that  Hardy  believed  that  White  had  told  the  truth  and 
just  as  complete  refutation  of  the  surmise  that  the  opinion  was 
based  only  on  White's  physical  condition.  It  was  because  of 
Hardy's  own  knowledge  of  the  upper  Colorado  that  he  was  con- 
vinced that  White  had  come  through  the  canyon,  and  not  alone 
because  of  White's  condition,  as  Dellenbaugh  concludes.  White 
could  scarcely  have  found  stronger  rebutting  testimony  if  he  had 
made  especial  search  for  it.  It  is  the  next  thing  to  having  an 
eyewitness  with  him  all  the  way  through. 

To  Mr.  Dellenbaugh  we  also  are  indebted  for  the  admission 
that  the  United  States  military  authorities  accepted  White  as 
the  only  authority  concerning  the  character  of  the  river  inside 
the  canyon. 


ON  THE  WAY. 

The  fact  having  been  established  by  so  many  witnesses  that 
White  actually  made  his  appearance  below  the  canyon,  the  case 
would  be  complete  if  it  could  be  shown  that  he  went  into  the 
canyon  at  its  head;  but  obviously  such  proof  is  impossible,  as 
there  were  no  white  men's  habitations  within  hundreds  of  miles 
on  the  day  that  White  and  Stroll  pulled  out  into  the  stream  to 
escape  the  savages  who  had  so  unceremoniously  deprived  them 
of  their  leader. 

All  that  can  be  done  to  substantiate  White's  story  regarding 
the  entrance  upon  his  perilous  enterprise  is  to  adduce  as  much 
testimony  as  possible  indicating  the  probability  of  truthfulness 
in  that  connection.  Necessarily,  in  view  of  the  lapse  of  time 
and  the  remoteness  of  the  locality,  such  proof  is  scarce.  Still 
it  is  not  entirely  lacking.  We  have  at  least  three  witnesses 
whose  testimony  shows  that  White  and  Baker,  with  others,  were 
moving  toward  the  head  of  the  canyon  in  the  spring  of  1867, 
and  fortunately  one  of  these  still  lives.  He  is  no  other  than 
Hon.  T.  J.  Ehrhart,  the  present  highly  regarded  chairman  of  the 
Colorado  State  Highway  Commission.  The  other  two  are  S.  B. 
Kellogg  and  Mrs.  Thomas  Pollock,  both  formerly  of  Lake  City, 
Colo.,  whom  we  find  quoted  in  the  Rocky  Mountain  News,  of 
Denver,  in  its  issue  of  November  14,  1877. 

The  statement  in  the  News  was  a  contribution  from  a  corre- 
spondent, and  the  reference  to  White  was  incidental  to  an 
effort  to  clear  up  the  fate  of  Baker,  who  as  the  leader  of  the  first 
expedition  into  the  San  Juan  region  was  a  historical  character 
in  Colorado.  Kellogg  had  aided  in  fitting  out  the  original 
Baker  expedition  when  it  left  California  Gulch  in  1860  and  had 
become  a  member  of  the  Baker  party  while  it  was  operating  in 
San  Juan  during  the  fall  of  that  year,  while  Mrs.  Pollock  had 
joined  the  party  as  the  wife  of  another  of  its  members.  When 
seen  by  the  representative  of  the  Denver  paper  both  resided  in 
Lake  City,  and  Kellogg  held  office  as  a  justice  of  the  peace. 

102360°— S.  Doc.  42,  65-1 4  49 


50  THE   GRAND   CANYON. 

The  News  correspondent  bases  his  whole  article  on  informa- 
tion supplied  by  these  two  former  associates  of  Baker,  and, 
after  detailing  the  facts  regarding  the  venture  of  1 860,  says : 

In  the  summer  of  1867  Charles  Baker  returned  to  Colorado  and  camped 
for  a  short  time  on  Chalk  Creek.  With  several  other  men  he  started  south 
from  there  and  wandered  through  the  mountains  prospecting.  Their  num- 
ber dwindled  down  until  only  Baker,  a  man  named  White,  and  another 
whose  name  is  forgotten,  remained  together. 

The  particulars  of  the  futile  prospecting  tour  through  the  San 
Juan,  the  journey  to  the  mouth  of  the  Grand  River,  the  murder 
of  Baker,  and  White's  voyage  down  the  river  are  then  recounted, 
after  which  recital  the  News  writer  adds : 

In  May  last  White  was  in  Lake  City,  and  it  is  believed  that  he  is  now  in 
the  southern  part  of  the  State.  He  is  about  35  years  of  age,  a  plain,  matter- 
of-fact,  practical,  adventurous  man.  There  is  not  a  shadow  of  doubt  about 
his  wonderful  adventures  and  his  marvelous  escape  through  the  Canyon  of 
the  Colorado. 

The  writer  does  not  say  in  explicit  words  that  Kellogg  and 
Mrs.  Pollock  met  Baker  while  engaged  in  his  new  prospecting 
enterprise,  but  he  gives  the  impression  that  they  were  relating 
facts  of  which  they  were  personally  cognizant.  As  a  matter  of 
fact,  however,  Baker's  presence  in  that  region  would  have  been 
the  subject  of  common  knowledge,  as  he  was  known  as  few  other 
men  there  because  of  his  identification  with  the  history  of  the 
country;  so  that  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  Mr.  Kellogg  and 
Mrs.  Pollock  knew  just  what  they  were  talking  about.  Hence 
their  testimony  goes  far  toward  corroborating  White's  story  of 
the  party's  visit  to  the  San  Juan  prior  to  the  adventure  on  the 
Rio  Colorado.  Incidentally  it  is  worth  while  to  point  out  that 
this  publication  was  made  eight  years  after  Powell's  voyage. 
More  significant  still  is  the  fact  that  it  appeared  in  the  Rocky 
Mountain  News,  whose  editor  was  a  close  personal  friend  of 
Maj.  Powell's. 

Ehrhart's  testimony  deals  with  the  Baker- White  party  at  a 
somewhat  earlier  stage  of  their  journey,  when  they  were  camped 
on  the  upper  waters  of  the  Arkansas  River.  In  response  to  a 
request  he  supplies  the  facts,  as  follows  : 

STATE  HIGHWAY  COMMISSION, 

STATS  OF  COLORADO, 
Denver,  November  22,  ipid. 

In  the  month  of  May,  1866,  my  father,  Jacob  G.  Ehrhart,  and  my  mother 
moved  from  Denver  to  a  placer  mining  camp  known  as  Cache  Creek  in  Lake 
County.  In  the  fall  of  that  year,  after  the  placer  mining  season  ended,  my 
father  moved  down  the  Arkansas  River  to  Browns  Creek,  occupying  a  one- 


THE   GRAND   CANYON.  51 

room  log  house  on  the  banks  of  the  stream.  At  that  time  there  were  about 
12  families  living  in  that  vicinity,  scattered  over  a  territory  6  or  8  miles 
square. 

Very  soon  after  we  moved  into  the  neighborhood  the  male  population  got 
together  and  built  a  log  schoolhouse  within  about  250  yards  of  the  cabin 
occupied  by  my  father.  This  building  had  no  floor  and  a  dirt  roof,  and  there 
was  a  very  large  fireplace  in  one  end.  At  that  time  there  was  no  lumber 
whatever  available  in  that  section,  and  benches  were  hewn  out  of  logs  with 
legs  inserted  in  holes  bored  in  the  underside  with  an  ordinary  auger.  Desks 
were  made  of  hewn  lumber  and  rested  on  pegs  driven  into  auger  holes  in 
logs  on  the  side  of  the  building.  They  employed  a  teacher,  and  school 
was  taught  in  this  building  during  that  winter. 

Whether  it  was  the  spring  of  1867  or  the  following  spring  of  1868  I  am  not 
sure,  there  was  a  party  consisting  of  a  number  of  men,  which  I  now  believe 
to  have  been  four,  camped  in  this  log  schoolhouse.  The  night  they  moved 
in  a  storm  came  up  and  there  was  a  very  heavy  fall  of  snow,  and  they 
remained  encamped  in  the  schoolhouse  for  several  days. 

I  accompanied  my  father  on  a  visit  to  the  camp  and  remember  that  a 
Capt.  Baker  evidently  was  the  leader  of  the  party  and  that  they  were  on 
their  way  to  the  San  Juan  section  of  the  State,  or  the  southwestern  part  of 
Colorado. 

On  the  morning  after  the  weather  had  settled,  the  party  was  packing  up 
to  move,  and  I,  as  a  boy,  was  very  anxious  to  go  from  the  cabin  we  occupied 
over  to  witness  the  breaking  of  the  camp,  but  my  mother  objected  to  me 
going  over,  and  I  stood  at  some  distance  from  our  cabin  watching  operations 
and  heard  a  number  of  revolver  shots  and  saw  that  there  was  considerable 
excitement  and  activity  among  the  men  at  the  schoolhouse  and  the  pack 
animals.  Very  soon  afterwards  some  one  from  the  camp — I  believe  Capt. 
Baker — came  to  our  cabin  and  stated  that  one  of  the  men  had  been  wounded 
in  the  foot,  and  wanted  to  leave  the  wounded  man  somewhere  where  he 
could  have  care  and  attention,  and  we  having  but  one  room,  he  was  directed 
to  a  neighbor's  farther  up  the  stream  by  the  name  of  Sprague,  where  he 
went  and  made  arrangements  to  leave  the  injured  man,  whose  name  was 
Joe  Goodfellow.  The  remainder  of  the  party  then  proceeded  on  their  way. 

Afterwards  I  remember  hearing  a  conversation  regarding  this  party  on 
several  occasions,  and  it  seems  to  me  little  of  a  definite  nature  was  heard 
from  them,  but  there  were  rumors  that  they  had  been  killed  by  Indians. 

Some  time,  perhaps  a  year,  later  I  remember  of  reading  in — I  am  not 
quite  sure — the  St.  Louis  Republic  an  account  of  a  member  of  this  party 
having  made  the  trip  on  a  raft  through  the  Grand  Canyon  of  the  Colorado 
and  landing  at  some  point  at  the  lower  end. 

In  January,  1916,  I  noticed  an  article  in  some  paper — I  think  written  by 
Congressman  Keating — stating  that  Mr.  James  White,  the  only  surviving 
member  of  this  party  who  had  gone  through  the  Grand  Canyon,  was  living 
at  Trinidad;  and  I  wrote  Mr.  White  something  about  my  impressions  con- 
cerning the  party  while  camped  in  the  old  schoolhouse  on  Browns  Creek, 
to  which  Mr.  White  replied,  proving  to  me,  without  question  of  doubt, 
that  Mr.  White  was  a  member  of  this  party. 

(Signed)  T.  J.  EHRHART, 

State  High-way  Commissioner. 


52  THE  GRAND   CANYON. 

The  writer  has  talked  personally  with  Mr.  Bhrhart,  and  in 
this  interview  he  not  only  confirmed  the  above  'statements,  but 
elaborated  them.  He  said  that  the  shooting  affair  was  so 
thrilling  that  it  made  a  lasting  impression  on  his  boyish  mind, 
which  was  deepened  by  the  fact  that  the  crippled  Goodfellow 
remained  indefinitely  in  the  Brown  Creek  neighborhood.  Noth- 
ing was  heard  of  the  party  after  their  departure  until  the 
spring  of  1868,  when  news  of  the  Baker  tragedy  and  the  White 
adventure  was  brought  to  his  father's  home  in  the  columns  of 
the  St.  Louis  paper.  When  the  newspaper  was  received  the 
people  of  the  vicinity  immediately  recognized  White  and 
Baker  as  members  of  the  camping  party  of  the  year  previous. 
Mr.  Bhrhart  remarked  especially  upon  the  number  of  horses 
belonging  to  the  party,  and  now  comes  White's  statement 
explaining  their  possession. 


WHITE'S  CHARACTER. 

It  is  believed  that  a  pretty  strong  case  has  been  made  for 
White.  It  has  been  made  plain  that  he  was  heading  toward 
the  canyon  in  the  spring  of  1867;  his  critics  admit  that  late 
in  the  season  of  that  year  he  was  taken  out  of  the  water 
below  the  canyon;  numerous  contemporaries  bear  testimony 
to  the  fact  that  from  the  time  he  emerged  from  the  river  he 
asserted  that  he  had  come  through  the  canyon,  and  there 
is  no  little  testimony  in  substantiation  of  the  latter  part  of 
the  story,  the  essential  part.  If  he  did  not  make  the  voyage, 
he  must  have  deliberately  fabricated  the  greatest  romance  of 
the  century,  and  he  should  have  gone  into  literature  as  a  rival 
of  Jules  Verne.  To  have  originated  from  the  whole  cloth  such 
a  yarn  as  this  he  must  have  been  as  mentally  strong  as  some  of 
his  critics  would  have  us  believe  he  is  morally  weak,  even  the 
''champion  prevaricator"  that  Dellenbaugh  asserts  him  to  be. 
But  what  are  the  facts  regarding  the  man's  mental  accomplish- 
ments and  moral  qualities  ? 

While  a  man  of  common  sense  and  ordinary  discernment, 
White  still  is  of  commonplace  education  and  is  possessed  of  no 
especial  powers  of  imagination.  He  knew  little  or  nothing  of  the 
Grand  Canyon,  of  its  mysteries  or  dangers,  until  Baker  told  him 
they  were  nearing  it.  He  then  was,  as  he  always  has  been,  a 
matter-of-fact  man,  as  indifferent  to  notoriety  as  he  was  in- 
capable of  weaving  an  intricate  romance.  Moreover,  and  above 
all,  if  we  are  to  believe  his  neighbors,  he  is  morally  above  mere 
deception  for  any  purpose.  He  has  resided  in  Trinidad  for  40 
years,  and  from  that  city  come  many  testimonials  as  to  his  char- 
acter for  integrity.  Among  the  documents  received  bearing  on 
this  point  are  letters  from  the  mayor  of  the  city,  the  senator 
representing  the  Trinidad  district  in  the  Colorado  Legislature, 
and  the  governor  of  the  State  of  Colorado,  all  neighbors  and 
long-time  acquaintances. 

Hon.  D.  L.  Taylor,  mayor  of  the  city,  a  still  older  man  and 
older  resident  than  White,  has  known  the  latter  ever  since  he 

53 


54  THE   GRAND   CANYON. 

located  in  Trinidad.1     In  a  letter  written  in  the  office  of  the 
mayor,  under  date  of  November  29,  1916,  Mr.  Taylor  says: 

I  have  known  Mr.  James  White  for  many  years,  possibly  40  or  more.  He 
has  lived  here  all  this  time — I  have  lived  here  since  1862 — and  I  can  hon- 
estly say  that  there  is  no  braggadocio  about  him .  He  is  not  gifted  in  telling 
big  stories  about  himself  or  about  what  he  has  done  at  any  time  of  his  life. 
The  same  story  that  he  tells  now  about  his  trip  through  the  Canyon  he  told 
me  when  I  first  knew  him.  He  has  a  grown-up  family,  and  they  can  tell 
the  story  the  same  as  he  does,  because,  as  I  suppose,  he  has  told  it  to  them 
so  often.  I  do  not  know  what  the  Powell  people  have  told;  but  if  they 
have  said  that  James  White  never  went  through  the  Canyon,  they  surely 
are  mistaken  or  they  have  some  object  in  view. 

Hon.  S.  W.  De  Busk,  State  senator  from  the  Trinidad  district, 
writes : 

I  have  known  James  White,  of  Trinidad,  Colo.,  since  1872.  He  was  in 
1872  engaged  in  general  labor  with  a  team  and  wagon,  and  so  continued  for 
a  long  while.  Later,  when  age  began  to  show  on  him,  he  reduced  his  labor 
to  light  hauling  with  a  small  spring  wagon  and  one  horse.  By  lighter  labor 
he  earned  a  livelihood  for  some  years. 

Since  I  first  met  White  he  has  occupied  his  own  residence  in  Trinidad; 
has  paid  his  taxes  like  any  other  good  citizen ;  has  discharged  his  obligations 
to  society;  has  been  careful  to  educate  his  children;  and  has  many  friends. 
I  think  he  has  no  enemies. 

In  1887  to  1895  White's  children  and  my  children  attended  the  same  school 
or  schools  in  Trinidad.  All  the  time  we  have  been  fast  friends  and 
neighbors. 

For  20  years  we  have  had  an  Early  Settlers'  Society,  of  which  I  happen 
now  to  be  the  secretary  and  local  historian.  This  position  has  caused  me 
to  seek  information  from  White  concerning  the  pioneer  times.  For  more 
than  a  decade  past  White  has  given  me  information  as  to  various  matters. 
Subjecting  his  statements  to  the  usual  tests,  I  have  found  them  to  be 
truthful.  He  is  not  a  "prevaricator"  or  "romancer."  He  has  not  the 
mental  character  or  mental  habit  of  the  romancer — in  other  words,  of  the 
common  liar.  White  does  not  launch  out  readily  and  naturally  into  long- 
spun yarns,  talk  of  fiction,  or  the  like.  To  get  from  him  what  the  average 
writer  or  reporter  wants  it  is  necessary  to  inject  questions  frequently — to 
go  back  a  little  now  and  then.  White  is  incapable  both  morally  and  intel- 
lectually of  putting  forth  fictitious  narrative.  He  lives  and  has  lived  the 
commonplace,  matter-of-fact  life  of  the  plain  workingman.  He  does  not 
dream.  He  has  always  been  a  man  of  work.  He  engaged  in  prospecting, 
in  driving  cattle,  in  herding  on  the  plains,  in  building  houses,  etc.  He 
has  always  stood  well  with  his  fellows,  and  does  now.  His  children  grew 
to  be  useful  and  respected  citizens. 

How  do  Mr.  Powell's  friends  know  that  White  prevaricates?  They 
have  no  such  knowledge.  The  plain,  truth-loving  people  of  this  section 

1  Mr.  Taylor  has  passed  to  his  reward  since  the  above  was  written.  He  remained  a  friend 
of  White's  to  the  end  and  was  ready  at  all -times  to  champion  his  cause. 


THE    GRAND   CANYON.  55 

accept  White's  version  of  his  terrible  journey  in  the  shadow  of  death  as 
being  substantially  and  circumstantially  true.  Some  heroes  have  their 
historians  and  are  accorded  greatness  of  endeavor.  The  majority  are  never 
exploited  and  pass  out  unknown.  May  we  not  give  to  John  Wesley  Powell 
his  due  without  assailing  a  single  hero  whose  only  misfortune  was  to  have 
had  no  aid  or  equipment  from  a  great  Government  and  no  historian  to 
tell  of  his  adventure? 

With  the  following  letter  from  Hon.  Julius  Gunter,  present 
governor  of  Colorado,  added,  there  is  a  pretty  good  showing 
for  the  man: 

I  have  known  James  White,  of  Trinidad,  Colo.,  for  more  than  thirty  years 
last  past,  and  during  twenty  years  of  that  time  both  White  and  myself  were 
residents  of  the  city  of  Trinidad.  During  the  first  years  that  I  knew  him 
he  owned  a  transfer  outfit  and  did  more  or  less  work  in  and  about  the  city 
of  Trinidad.  Since  that  time  he  has  struggled  along  in  a  quiet,  industrious 
way  and  out  of  very  limited  means  has  reared  and  educated  a  worthy  fam- 
ily. White  has  at  all  times  during  the  years  that  I  have  known  him  been 
a  worthy,  industrious,  law-abiding  citizen,  respected  by  the  community 
in  which  he  lived.  I  would  trust  White  and  would  believe  any  statement 
that  he  made.  During  these  years  I  have  frequently  in  the  community 
heard  admiring  mention  made  of  his  passage  through  the  Grand  Canyon, 
and  I  have  at  no  time  heard  it  disputed. 

Gov.  Gunter's  letter  was  written  at  the  office  of  the  governor 
in  the  statehouse  at  Denver,  and  is  dated  January  19,  1917. 

The  following  letter  from  Eli  Jeffryes,  cashier  of  the  First 
National  Bank  of  Trinidad,  is  selected  from  a  number  which 
have  been  tendered  by  private  citizens  of  that  city: 

I  have  known  Mr.  James  White,  of  this  city,  for  the  past  thirty-three 
years.  In  all  that  time  I  have  known  him  to  be  a  man  of  first-class  repu- 
tation. He  is  the  father  of  a  very  splendid  family  of  children,  all  of  whom 
are  a  credit  to  this  community.  We  consider  him  entirely  honest,  and  he 
is  of  good  credit  locally. 

It  is  not  believed  that  more  is  necessary  to  establish  the  man's 
reliability. 


BUT  DID  HE  GO  OVERLAND? 

It  remains  to  consider  the  contention  that  White  really  made 
the  greater  portion  of  his  trip  by  land  and  not  on  the  river. 
This,  indeed,  is  the  only  alternative  of  the  critics  when  it  is 
admitted  that  he  was  on  the  lower  Colorado.  They  contend 
that  he  did  not  enter  upon  his  voyage  until  after  the  stream 
emerged  from  the  canyon. 

This  refuge  goes  far  to  show  the  poverty  of  resource  on  the 
part  of  the  faultfinders.  From  the  vicinity  of  Grand  River, 
high  up  in  the  mountains  of  Utah,  to  Callville,  is  a  distance  of 
five  or  six  hundred  miles,  and  the  intervening  country  is  most 
inhospitable  indeed.  Even  to  the  present  day  much  of  it  is 
practically  uninhabited,  and  in  the  main  it  is  without  roads. 
Part  of  it  is  a  desert  waste,  and  for  long  stretches  the  surface 
of  the  land  is  an  alternation  of  deep  canyons  and  waterless 
plateaus,  affording  no  foothold  for  game  or  edible  vegetables. 
To  the  traveler  it  would  have  been  alike  dangerous  on  account 
of  thirst,  starvation,  fatigue,  and  accident,  and  if  he  had  escaped 
all  these  he  would  have  been  almost  sure  to  fall  into  the  hands 
of  some  of  the  savage  Indians  who  were  to  be  found  in  places. 
If  he  had  succeeded  in  making  this  arduous  journey,  why  should 
White  have  concealed  the  fact?  But  did  he  make  it  without 
knowing  the  fact?  It  does  not  seem  credible  that  he  should 
have  been  so  deceived,  and  if  he  had  been  prompted  only  by 
the  desire  to  tell  a  big  tale  the  story  of  the  overland  journey 
would  have  been  almost  as  good  as  the  account  of  the  canyon 
voyage. 

But  the  critics  go  to  the  extent  of  asserting  that  White  did  not 
start  from  the  vicinity  of  Grand  River  at  all — that,  instead  of 
going  toward  that  stream  from  the  San  Juan,  the  Baker  party 
really  turned  in  the  other  direction,  proceeding  southward 
instead  of  northward.  Thus,  they  argue,  it  transpired  that 
when  Baker  was  killed  the  prospectors  were  near  the  lower 
instead  of  the  upper  end  of  the  Great  Canyon — that  White  and 
Stroll  launched  their  craft  below  all  but  one  or  two  of  the 
dangerous  rapids.  In  support  of  this  view  they  say  that 

56 


THE   GRAND   CANYON.  57 

White's  description  of  both  river  and  canyon  fits  the  portion 
below  the  gorge,  but  not  that  within  it.  Those  who  advance 
this  view  are  charitable  enough  to  concede  White's  honesty 
of  purpose;  they  contend  that  he  was  lost,  and  simply  knew  not 
where  he  was,  contradicting  Dellenbaugh's  charge  that  he  was 
a  willful  deceiver.  Immediately  following  is  given  Mr.  White's 
own  refutation  of  this  theory,  and  it  is  convincing.  It  cer- 
tainly is  beyond  belief  that  any  man  of  the  most  commonplace 
intelligence  should  wander  for  weeks  through  any  region  with- 
out knowing  the  direction  in  which  he  was  traveling.  He  had 
only  to  glance  over  his  shoulder  at  any  time  between  sunrise 
and  sunset  to  determine  the  point  of  the  compass  toward 
which  his  face  was  turned. 

Following  is  Mr.  White's  letter: ' 

TRINIDAD,  COLO.,  April  20,  1917. 
Mr.  THOMAS  F.  DAWSON, 

Washington,  D.  C. 

DEAR  SIR:  I  have  come  into  knowledge  of  the  fact  that  a  charge  has  been 
made  that  I  did  not  reach  the  Colorado  River  above  the  San  Juan,  but  below 
it.  You  will  notice  from  the  account  that  I  sent  you  of  my  trip  that  when 
our  party  started  on  our  prospecting  trip  we  were  headed  for  the  Grand 
River,  as  Baker  said  there  was  gold  in  that  part  of  the  country;  but  Baker 
was  killed  before  reaching  the  Grand  River  in  a  canyon  between  the  San 
Juan  and  the  Grand.  I  knew  nothing  of  the  country,  but  Baker  did,  and 
he  kept  a  memorandum ;  but  we  did  not  think  of  it  after  the  Indians  at- 
tacked us,  as  we  had  to  make  our  escape  as  quickly  as  possible.  Mr.  Baker 
also  carried  a  compass  and  kept  us  informed  as  to  the  directions  we  were 
traveling,  and  he  told  us  that  we  were  going  north  to  the  Grand  River;  that 
the  Grand  River  and  the  Green  River  formed  the  Colorado  River. 

Baker  was  killed  after  we  crossed  the  San  Juan  River  in  a  canyon  between 
the  San  Juan  and  the  Grand,  being  north  of  the  San  Juan.  We  camped  in 
the  canyon  that  night,  and  the  next  morning  we  had  to  go  out  the  way  we 
went  in,  and  that  is  where  the  Indians  attacked  us  and  Baker  was  killed. 

1  These  letters  from  White  raise  a  new  question  as  to  where  he  and  Stroll  entered  upon 
their  voyage  down  the  Colorado.  They  are  explicit  in  declaring  that  they  were  above 
the  San  Juan  at  the  time,  but  it  is  shown  that  the  Baker  party  had  not  reached  Grand  River 
when  Baker  was  killed.  All  accounts  written  by  others  than  White  himself  have  represented 
that  Baker  met  his  fate  while  emerging  from  a  canyon  of  the  Grand  and  that  the  survivors 
found  their  way  to  the  Colorado  down  that  stream.  In  his  own  main  story,  printed  herewith, 
White  states  that  the  Baker  tragedy  occurred  before  Grand  River  was  reached,  but  in  that 
article  he  was  not  so  emphatic  as  in  this  last  letter.  The  italics  used  here  are  White's  own, 
and  evidently  it  is  his  purpose  to  make  it  most  clear  that  while  he  and  Stroll  reached  the 
Colorado  near  the  confluence  of  the  Grand  and  the  Green,  they  did  not  follow  down  the  Grand 
either  by  raft  or  on  foot.  The  fact  would  seem  to  be  that  while  the  party  was  headed  for  the 
Grand  it  was  prevented  by  the  Indians  from  going  so  far  north  or  west,  and  it  would  appear 
probable  that  the  mistake  of  early  writers  may  have  been  due  to  an  inference  that  the  party 
really  reached  this  destination.  May  it  not  be  possible  that  White  and  Stroll  came  to  the 
Colorado  farther  below  the  junction  than  they  supposed?  If  so,  the  short  distance  to  the 
mouth  of  the  San  Juan,  as  estimated  by  White,  would  be  explained. 


58  THE  GRAND   CANYON. 

George  Stroll  and  I  went  down  the  canyon,  traveling  all  that  day,  reach- 
ing the  Colorado  River  just  below  where  the  Grand  River  and  the  Green 
River  meet,  forming  the  Colorado  River,  and  there  we  made  our  raft  and 
began  our  descent  down  the  Colorado. 

We  did  not  travel  down  any  small  stream  before  reaching  the  Colorado  River. 

Mr.  Baker  was  a  man  who  had  prospected  a  good  deal  in  the  San  Juan 
country,  and  surely  he  knew  where  he  was  and  in  which  direction  he  was 
going. 

I  guess  the  story  will  be  attacked  when  printed,  but  I  am  willing  to  talk 
to  anyone  and  convince  them  that  I  entered  the  Colorado  River  above  the 
San  Juan  and  not  below  it. 

I  do  not  like  to  bother  you  so  much,  but  I  thought  it  best  to  let  you  know 
of  this  charge  and  to  try  and  explain  fully  to  you  why  I  know  that  we 
entered  the  Colorado  River  north  of  the  San  Juan  River. 

Thanking  you  for  your  kindness,  and  hoping  that  some  day  I  will  have 
the  pleasure  of  meeting  you,  I  am, 
Very  truly,  yours, 

(Signed)  JAMBS  WHITE. 


THE  PROBABILITIES. 

The  writer  believes  himself  to  be  absolutely  unprejudiced  in 
this  matter.  Before  he  began  his  investigation  he  stood  with  the 
vast  majority  in  awarding  the  "first"  honors  to  Maj.  Powell. 
He  is  willing  to  concede  the  great — the  almost  insurmountable — 
obstacles  in  White's  way;  but  he  has  found  so  much,  both  in  fact 
and  reason,  in  support  of  the  White  story  that  he  has  concluded 
by  accepting  it.  It  is  not  enough  to  say  that  it  is  improbable — 
not  enough  to  merely  say  that  it  is  impossible.  There  is  an  east- 
ern proverb  to  the  effect  that  "  the  impossible  is  seen  when  it 
happens. "  It  would  seem  to  the  unprejudiced  to  be  incumbent 
upon  Mr.  White's  critics  to  show  more  conclusively  than  they 
have  shown  how  the  man  got  from  the  mouth  of  Grand  River  to 
the  mouth  of  the  Virgen,  and  this  they  can  not  do  by  mere 
theorizing,  much  less  by  calling  names. 

Since  the  problem  resolves  itself  into  a  question  of  probabili- 
ties, let  us  consider  it  briefly  from  that  point  of  view. 

If  a  boat  can  survive  a  trip  through  the  canyon  under  human 
direction,  why  can  not  a  log  or  a  raft  (a  collection  of  logs)  do 
likewise?  Doubtless  in  the  course  of  time,  even  without  the 
guiding  hand  of  man,  many  a  piece  of  timber  has  found  its  way 
from  the  upper  to  the  lower  end  of  the  canyon  without  being 
smashed  into  "  toothpicks. "  It  will  be  conceded  that  the 
chances  for  a  raft  coming  out  intact  are  fewer  than  that  a  single 
log  should  go  through  unscathed.  But  it  should  be  remembered 
that  we  are  discussing  possibilities.  It  may  well  be  that  White's 
rafts  were  exceptionally  strong  ones.  They  were  made  of  drift 
logs,  probably  well  seasoned  in  both  sunshine  and  water,  and  tied 
together  with  lariats.  Did  you  ever  test  the  strength  of  the 
frontiersman's  lariat  or  the  security  of  a  knot  tied  by  one  of 
them  ?  It  will  be  remembered,  too,  that  White  confesses  to  the 
necessity  of  frequent  repairs  and  that  he  tells  of  being  compelled 
to  abandon  one  of  his  rafts  and  to  construct  another.  Doubtless 
he  experienced  more  difficulty  in  keeping  the  crude  craft  intact 
than  he  remembered  to  tell  about.  He  also  confesses  to  frequent 
submergings.  His  life  would  have  been  lost  early  in  the  voyage 
but  for  his  foresight  in  tying  himself  to  the  timber.  One  thing 
a  log  will  surely  do  is  to  float ;  and  so  long  as  White  was  securely 
fastened  there  was  no  danger  of  being  separated  from  the  raft, 

59 


60  THE  GRAND   CANYON. 

wherever  the  current  might  carry  it,  whether  under  the  water 
or  on  the  surface.  He  was  fortunate  in  keeping  on  the  right 
side  most  of  the  time — fortunate  also  in  possessing  a  constitu- 
tion rendering  him  capable  of  undergoing  more  hardships  than 
most  men. 

A  most  important  point  is  that  he  made  his  journey  late  in 
the  summer,  when  the  water  was  low,  for  at  that  season  the 
the  dangers  attending  the  navigation  of  the  stream  are  mini- 
mized. When  on  his  second  survey  Mr.  Stanton  discovered 
to  be  comparatively  harmless  the  Marble  Canyon  rapids,  in 
which  President  Brown  had  found  a  liquid  grave  when  the 
river  was  much  higher  only  a  few  months  before. 

Objection  has  been  made  that  the  time  of  two  weeks  in  which 
White  claims  to  have  made  the  voyage  is  inadequate  for  that 
purpose  under  the  most  favorable  circumstances.  True,  all 
the  purposeful  expeditions — those  of  Powell,  Stanton,  and  the 
Kolbs— have  consumed  much  more  time.  But  is  not  that  fact 
principally  due  to  the  circumstance  that  they  had  work  to  do 
on  the  way?  Moreover,  they  were  provided  with  food,  with 
strong  boats,  with  clothes,  and  sleeping  accommodations,  with, 
indeed,  all  possible  facilities  for  comfort.  Naturally  they  were 
not  in  so  great  a  hurry  as  the  naked,  starving,  frightened  miner 
fleeing  for  his  life  from  a  band  of  bloodthirsty  savages  and  seeing 
no  hope  except  in  emergence  at  the  lower  end  of  his  rock-ribbed 
prison. 

The  bare  facts,  however,  will  show  that  his  rate  of  travel  was 
not  unreasonably  rapid.  As  we  have  seen,  the  distance  through 
the  canyon  is  about  500  miles.  White  was  on  the  water  for  14 
days.  He  therefore  traveled  at  an  average  rate  of  about  36 
miles  a  day.  It  was  summer,  and  the  days  were  long,  admitting 
of  perhaps  15  hours  of  daylight  travel,  so  that  the  average 
speed  was  less  than  2^2  miles  per  hour.  Considering  that  the 
mean  fall  of  the  river  throughout  the  canyon  is  a  little  over 
6  feet  per  mile,  this  rate  is  not  unreasonable  even  for  a  raft. 
Without  any  aid  of  propulsion  it  would  surely  cover  the  distance 
at  that  rate  if  lodgment  was  prevented,  as  it  was  in  this  case.- 

Moreover,  it  is  to  be  remembered  that  others  than  Powell, 
Stanton,  and  the  Kolbs  have  traversed  the  canyon.  One  does 
not  hear  so  much  of  the  exploits  of  the  Mormon  trapper,  Nathan 
Galloway,  who  has  made  the  voyage  of  the  canyon  no  fewer 
than  three  times,  more  frequently  than  any  other  person.  All 


THE   GRAND   CANYON.  6 1 

these  trips  were  made  in  frail  boats  of  Galloway's  own  construc- 
tion, and  one  of  them,  beginning  higher  up  stream  than  White's, 
was  accomplished  in  21  days.  Doubtless  Galloway  could  have 
expedited  his  journey  if  he  had  so  desired;  but  he,  too,  was  pro- 
vided with  the  ordinary  comforts,  and  he  must  have  felt  at 
liberty  to  stop  when  he  so  desired  and  to  remain  in  any  given 
camp  as  long  as  suited  his  convenience.  It  would  seem,  then, 
that  the  record  time  made  by  White  does  not  necessarily  count 
against  him. 

But,  it  is  asked,  are  the  criticisms  of  Dellenbaugh,  James,  and 
Stanton,  to  say  nothing  of  those  of  the  Kolbs,  to  be  ignored? 
They  could  not  be  and  should  not  be.  Without  exception  their 
authors  are  men  of  high  character.  In  the  main,  their  criti- 
cisms are  based  on  the  alleged  inaccuracies  regarding  topogra- 
phy which  are  to  be  found  in  the  statements  attributed  to 
White.  Doubtless  these  departures  from  the  facts  seem  far 
more  glaring  to  those  who  have  been  over  the  course  than  to 
those  who  have  not,  and  objections  are  to  be  expected  from  men 
who  know  the  difficulties  and  dangers  of  the  trip  from  personal 
experience.  tttfiXJTOrt 

But  are  they  really  valid  ?  White  was  there  neither  as  a  topo- 
graphical engineer  nor  as  a  summer  tourist.  He  carried  no  sur- 
veyor's chain,  and  he  was  not  making  an  especial  study  of 
scenery.  Is  it  to  be  held  as  vitally  against  him  if  he  character- 
ized the  canyon  walls  as  "grayish  sandstone,"  when  as  a  matter 
of  fact  red  is  the  prevailing  color  and  they  are  gray  only  in  spots 
and  sandstone  only  in  layers  ?  Or  if  he  said  the  walls  were  4,000 
feet  at  such  and  such  a  place  when  they  ranged  from  1,300  to 
3,000  feet?  If  he  did  represent  that  there  was  a  whirlpool  at  or 
near  the  mouth  of  the  Little  Colorado,  when  there  were  whirl- 
pools at  almost  every  other  place  ?  If  he  did  not  carry  a  tape- 
line  with  which  to  measure  the  miles  between  the  San  Juan  and 
the  Little  Colorado?  If  he  really  went  through,  he  knew  well 
enough  that  there  were  high  walls  and  cataracts  and  mael- 
stroms a-plenty;  and  it  was  not  unnatural  that  under  the 
unusual  circumstances  of  his  voyage  he  should  get  mixed  on 
some  of  these  facts.  Can  these  faults  of  detail,  even  if  he  is  to 
be  held  responsible  for  all  of  them,  be  made  to  count  against  the 
direct  testimony  of  the  dozen  or  more  witnesses  called  in  White's 
behalf,  or  against  his  own  straightfonvard  story?  In  the 
nature  of  things,  not  one  of  the  faultfinders  speaks  from  actual 
knowledge  of  White's  achievement. 


WHY  THE  CRITIC? 

Why,  then,  the  position  the  critics  so  tenaciously  hold  with 
respect  to  the  White  exploit?  To  this  writer  they  seem  quite 
unexplainable  except  upon  the  theory  already  hinted  at,  that 
the  harrowing  experiences  of  most  of  them  rendered  it  impos- 
sible for  them  to  accept  the  White  story.  To  the  man  who  had 
been  over  the  ground,  who  had  experienced  the  untold  hard- 
ships of  the  trip  under  the  most  favorable  circumstances,  whose 
comrades  had  been  snatched  from  their  very  hands,  and  who  had 
seen  the  strongest  boats  writhe  and  grind  in  the  turbulent 
waters,  the  possibility  of  making  the  same  journey  on  a  log  raft 
must  naturally  seem  quite  out  of  the  question ;  and  believing  it 
so,  they  have  denounced  White  as  an  impostor  and  prevaricator, 
as  a  victim  as  well  as  the  author  of  deceit.  They  could  not  have 
entered  upon  the  discussion  of  this  performance  with  other  than 
prejudiced  minds,  and  thus  the  very  circumstance  which  it 
would  seem  should  make  them  most  competent  as  judges  renders 
them  least  capable  of  all  to  pass  upon  the  subject  fairly.  They 
pronounce  White's  success  impossible  because  they  do  not  be- 
lieve they  could  duplicate  it  under  similar  circumstances.  How, 
for  instance,  could  Stanton  reconcile  White's  story  of  a  success- 
ful voyage  throughout  the  whole  length  of  the  fearful  chasm 
after  practically  seeing  his  friend  and  associate,  Brown,  snatched 
from  his  strong  boat  and  engulfed  in  descending  one  of  the  first 
of  the  great  cataracts  which  characterize  the  canyon  ?  It  is  not 
probable  that  any  of  them  could  have  duplicated  the  White 
experience,  or,  indeed,  that  he  himself  could  have  done  so.  But 
circumstances  and  a  kind  Providence  were  with  him,  and  it 
would  seem  reasonable  to  believe  that  in  time  the  fact  that  he 
actually  made  the  voyage  will  come  to  be  generally  acknowledged. 

While,  however,  it  is  believed  to  be  true  that  White  was  the 
first  person  to  penetrate  the  mysteries  of  the  great  chasm,  there 
is  no  contention  that  he  "explored"  it.  If  Maj.  Powell's 
friends  would  content  themselves  with  claiming  for  him  the 
honor  of  being  the  " first  explorer"  of  the  canyon,  as  is  set 
forth  on  the  Government  monument,  Mr.  White  should  take 
62 


THE   GRAND   CANYON.  63 

no  exception.  An  exploration  is  necessarily  an  investigation, 
and  an  investigation  requires  premeditation  and  deliberation. 
Neither  of  these  characterized  White's  adventure.  His  trip 
was  due  to  the  emergency  of  a  serious  predicament,  and  he  had 
no  time  for  any  but  the  most  casual  observation,  if,  indeed,  he 
had  been  trained  for  any  more  advanced  work.  When  Baker 
was  killed  White  was  compelled  either  to  take  to  the  water 
or  to  face  an  unknown  number  of  savages  bent  upon  taking 
his  life,  and  he  chose  the  former  course  without  any  thought 
of  investigating  the  mysteries  of  the  canyon,  probably  with 
comparatively  little  appreciation  of  the  dangers  ahead  of  him. 
Once  in  the  vast  inclosure,  he  did  not  see  any  way  out  but  to 
continue  to  the  end,  wherever  that  might  be. 

On  the  other  hand,  Maj.  Powell  went  into  the  canyon  deliber- 
ately and  with  well-defined  purpose  in  the  interest  of  science. 
Too  much  can  not  be  said  in  praise  of  his  pluck  and  endurance, 
and  he  accomplished  important  results.  His  achievement 
astonished  the  world,  and  the  world  has  freely  made  its  acknowl- 
edgment. 

If  we  understand  their  attitude,  White's  friends  would  not 
rob  Powell  of  one  jot  or  tittle  of  the  fame  thus  earned.  Their 
complaint  is  against  the  effort  to  appropriate  laurels  to  which 
they  contend  Powell  is  not  entitled. 


DID  POWELL  KNOW? 

It,  however,  is  not  to  be  conceded  that  White's  observations, 
however  casual  and  undirected,  were  not  of  value  to  the  world. 
We  have  seen  that  Gen.  Palmer  was  able  to  draw  important  con- 
clusions regarding  the  length  of  the  gorge  and  the  difficulties 
of  navigating  it,  and  that  Dr.  Parry  formulated  a  formidable 
array  of  conclusions  of  a  semi-scientific  character  as  a  result  of 
the  White  trip. 

Without  entering  upon  a  discussion  of  Parry's  outline,  it  must 
be  admitted  that  if  White  traveled  on  the  water  from  one  end  of 
the  canyon  to  the  other  he  accomplished  the  one  essential  result 
of  demonstrating  that  such  a  voyage  was  a  possibility.  Previous 
to  1 867  no  one  knew  this  fact.  No  one  had  been  over  the  road, 
and,  as  Maj.  Powell  himself  tells  us,  the  best  information  ob- 
tainable was  that  it  was  beset  with  insurmountable  difficulties. 
Many  a  trapper  was  believed  to  have  been  drawn  into  the  gorge 
never  to  return.  The  Indians  peopled  it  with  hobgoblins.  Some 
asserted  that  there  were  underground  passages  of  great  extent, 
into  which  no  one  dared  enter,  and  waterfalls  of  such  height 
that  none  could  hope  to  survive  their  passage.  In  view  of  the 
general  opinion  as  to  the  danger,  vague  though  it  may  have 
been,  few  would  have  been  sufficiently  courageous  to  undertake 
the  exploration  of  the  canyon  voluntarily,  even  in  the  interest 
of  that  most  exacting  mistress,  Science.  No  one  is  likely 
voluntarily  to  enter  into  an  unknown  Mammoth  Cave  with 
a  liquid  bottom  or  to  plunge  heedlessly  over  a  Niagara.  As  this 
writer  views  the  question,  it  would  have  been  foolhardy  in  the 
extreme  to  intentionally  undertake  such  a  voyage  with  the 
information  at  hand,  and  he  accordingly  thinks  that,  in  addition 
to  deserving  laudation  for  what  he  did,  Maj.  Powell  is  entitled 
to  commendation  for  not  entering  upon  his  venture  without 
knowing  that  the  river  was  free  from  unsurmountable  obstacles. 
That  fact  had  been  demonstrated  by  White. 

Of  course,  this  argument  proceeds  upon  the  theory  that  Maj. 
Powell  was  aware  of  White's  achievement.  To  adopt  the  oppo- 
site view  would  be  to  raise  a  question  as  to  the  major's  general 
intelligence  and  up-to-dateness,  and  no  one  who  knew  him  would 
accuse  him  in  either  direction. 


THE   GRAND   CANYON.  65 

At  the  time  that  White  made  his  trip  Powell  was  professor  of 
geology  in  the  Illinois  State  Normal  University  and  curator  of 
the  Illinois  State  Natural  History  Society.  As  we  have  seen, 
Dr.  Parry's  report  was  published  in  the  Transactions  of  the 
Academy  of  Sciences  of  the  adjacent  city  of  St.  Louis.  What 
more  natural  than  to  conclude  that  Powell  obtained  information 
of  White's  work  from  the  society  itself?  Organizations  of  the 
character  of  the  St.  Louis  society  do  not  seek  to  conceal  their 
proceedings,  and  generally  scientific  men  are  afforded  every 
opportunity  to  familiarize  themselves  with  any  developments 
made  by  one  of  them.  They  make  free  exchange  of  publications. 
If  the  Parry  report  came  under  his  observation  he  obtained  from 
it  the  following  suggestions : 

The  absence  of  any  distinct  cataract  or  perpendicular  falls  would  seem  to 
warrant  the  conclusion  that  in  time  of  high  water  by  proper  appliances  in  the 
form  of  india-rubber  boats  and  provisions  secured  in  waterproof  bags,  with 
good,  resolute  oarsmen,  the  same  passage  might  be  safely  made  and  the 
actual  course  of  the  river  mapped  out  and  its  peculiar  geological  features 
properly  examined. 

Two  years  later  Maj.  Powell  entered  upon  his  exploration, 
starting  in  the  spring,  when  the  water  is  generally  highest,  with 
waterproof  bags,  with  strong,  though  not  rubber,  boats  manned 
by  "good  and  resolute  oarsmen"  for  the  purpose  of  "mapping 
the  course  of  the  river  and  examining  and  reporting  upon  the 
peculiar  geological  features  of  the  canyon,"  all  in  the  line  of 
Parry's  suggestions,  which  were  based  on  White's  report.  Is 
this  merely  another  illustration  of  the  adage  that  great  minds 
run  in  the  same  channel  ? 

But  if  Maj.  Powell  did  not  procure  his  information  regarding 
White's  work  from  Parry  or  the  St.  Louis  society,  he  could 
scarcely  have  failed  to  read  of  it  in  the  public  press,  from  which 
it  received  no  little  attention.  He  had  opportunity  as  early  as 
the  fall  of  1867  to  get  the  full  story  in  the  newspapers.  There  is 
additional  reason  for  supposing  that  if  he  did  not  get  it  then  he 
did  get  it  in  the  winter  of  1868—69.  He  spent  much  of  his  time 
on  the  Grand  in  1 867  and  1 868  and  the  early  part  of  1 869.  He 
and  William  N.  Byers,  proprietor  of  the  Rocky  Mountain  News, 
were  intimate  friends  and  were  much  together.  The  Parry 
article  was  published  in  the  News  in  January,  1869,  several 
months  before  Powell  began  his  voyage.  It  would  seem  scarcely 

102360°— S.  Doc.  42,  65-1 5 


66  THE  GRAND   CANYON. 

possible  that  he  and  Byers  did  not  discuss  the  White  exploit 
either  before  or  after  the  appearance  of  the  account  in  Byers' 
paper. 

But  even  if  Powell  did  not  read  the  story  in  the  newspapers  or 
get  it  through  Parry,  he  could  not  well  have  failed  to  hear  it  from 
the  people  of  Colorado.  Every  frontiersman  knew  something 
about  the  Grand  Canyon.  All  had  heard  discussed  its  mys- 
teries and  the  difficulties  of  traversing  its  depths.  It  was  a 
popular  belief  that  it  concealed  many  a  Golconda,  and  the 
frontier  miner's  hope  was  to  have  it  made  accessible  for  pros- 
pecting. Hence,  however  little  attention  the  White  exploit 
may  have  received  in  other  localities,  there  can  be  no  doubt  that 
it  attracted  wide  notice  in  Colorado,  and  especially  among  the 
dwellers  along  the  course  of  the  Grand,  the  main  Colorado 
tributary  of  the  Colorado  River.  And  if  they  had  the  informa- 
tion Powell  would  have  had  it  also.1 

1  Some  time  after  the  writing  out  of  this  theory  that  Powell  had  been  aware  of  the  White 
voyage  before  beginning  his  own,  the  writer  most  unexpectedly  came  upon  what  he  believes 
to  be  almost  convincing  proof  of  the  correctness  of  the  hypothesis.  This  was  found  in  a  little 
book  by  Samuel  Bowles  of  the  Springfield  (Mass. )  Republican,  giving  an  account  of  a  camping 
tour  through  Colorado,  made  during  the  summer  of  1868,  and  entitled  Colorado;  its  Parks  and 
Mountains.  As  has  been  stated  elsewhere,  Maj.  Powell,  then  frequently  referred  to  as  Prof. 
Powell,  spent  much  time  in  the  years  1867  and  1868  in  Middle  Park,  on  the  headwaters  of  the 
Grand  River,  the  Colorado  tributary  of  the  Colorado.  He  was  accompanied  by  a  number 
of  students  who  were  engaged  in  exploring  that  then  largely  unknown  region.  There  they 
were  met  by  Bowles  and  his  party,  in  which  was  included  Vice  President  Colfax  and  Gov. 
Bross,  of  Illinois.  Mr.  Bowles  devotes  considerable  space  to  the  work  of  the  Powell  party,  as  a 
basis  for  which  he  says: 

'.'We  made  familiar  and  friendly  acquaintance  with  Prof.  Powell's  scientific  and  exploring 
party,  from  Illinois,  while  in  Middle  Park.  They  were  in  camp  there  for  some  tune,  and  made 
it  the  end  of  their  summer  and  the  beginning  of  their  winter  campaign. "  (In  another  connec- 
tion Mr.  Bowles  speaks  of  intimate  association  with  Powell  while  in  the  park.) 

After  describing  the  work  of  the  party  in  that  vicinity,  Mr.  Bowles  outlines  the  plans  of 
Maj.  Powell  for  the  exploration  of  the  Colorado  during  the  next  season.  Dwelling  at  some 
length  upon  the  general  ignorance  relative  to  the  Grand  Canyon  and  the  popular  belief  that 
any  effort  to  explore  it  meant  certain  death,  Mr.  Bowles  continues: 

"But  we  have  an  authentic  account  this  season  of  a  man  who  made  the  trip  last  year  and 
lives  to  tell  the  tale.  He  and  a  companion,  prospecting  for  gold  in  southwestern  Colorado, 
and  driven  by  Indians,  took  to  the  Grand  River  just  before  its  union  with  the  Green,  made  a 
raft,  and  committed  themselves  to  the  waters.  Foaming  rapids  and  a  whirlpool  swept  the 
companion  and  all  the  provisions  off,  and  they  were  lost,  while  White,  the  surviving  hero's 
name,  without  food  passed  seven  days  more,  a  second  seven  days,  upon  these  strange  waters, 
between  frowning  walls,  over  dangerous  rapids,  through  delaying  eddies,  before  he  reached 
Callville  in  Arizona,  the  first  settlement  and  the  head  of  navigation  on  the  river." 

This  account  of  the  meeting  with  Powell  and  the  narrative  of  the  White  exploit  were  em- 
braced in  one  letter,  which  was  written  by  Bowles  on  his  way  out  of  the  park,  and  only  a  few 
days  after  leaving  Powell.  Why  the  juxtaposition  if  not  because  of  the  Powell  meeting? 
And  where  in  that  wilderness  could  Bowles  have  gotten  his  information  but  from  Powell? 
Or,  if,  on  the  other  hand,  we  assume  that  Bowles  possessed  this  information  rather  than 
Powell,  may  we  not  most  reasonably  assume  that  he  would  have  imparted  it  to  the  man 
who  was  about  to  head  an  expedition  of  his  own  down  the  river?  In  either  event,  Powell 
would  have  known  the  facts  before  beginning  his  voyage.  It  is  quite  evident  that  either 
through  Powell  or  some  other  channel  Bowles  had  become  familiar  with  the  Parry  report, 
for  his  account  is  a  mere  paraphrase  of  that  document. 


THE   GRAND   CANYON.  67 

Knowing,  then,  that  the  canyon  had  been  navigated  from 
end  to  end;  knowing  that  it  no  longer  was  entirely  untraveled, 
and  knowing  especially  that  it  was  without  high  waterfalls, 
Powell  might  well  enter  upon  his  survey,  appreciating  the 
danger  of  the  undertaking,  but  still  willing  to  take  the  risk  for 
the  further  advancement  of  the  world's  welfare  and  the  pro- 
motion of  his  own  fame.  He  accomplished  both  of  these 
worthy  purposes.  But  in  his  great  achievement  he  had  a  way 
shower  in  the  person  of  James  White.  And  to  James  White 
belongs  whatever  glory  there  is  to  be  awarded  to  the  First 
Through  the  Grand  Canyon — one  of  the  most  marvelous 
adventures  of  all  time. 

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